Net Zero

Net Zero Planning Grant

Net Zero Planning Grant
The Net Zero Planning Grant provides NSW businesses an opportunity to receive up to $30,000 in funding to cover up to 75% of the cost to strategically plan for and progress their path to net zero.
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Key information

  • Status: Closed
  • Grant amount: up to $30,000
  • Application opened: 29 January 2025
  • Application closed: 13 March 2025, 4:00 pm

Program objective

The objectives of the Net Zero Planning Grant are to:

  • support businesses with long-term net zero planning
  • enhance businesses' understanding of net zero, to better integrate climate-related risks and opportunities into business planning, strengthen resilience and reduce emissions
  • provide practical guidance to businesses to identify and take actions to progress towards net zero
  • enable businesses to improve their competitiveness in the global transition to net zero.

This program is administered by The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.

Eligibility

1

Who can apply

To be eligible for the Net Zero Planning Grant, you must meet the following key eligibility criteria:

  • Have an Australian Business Number (ABN) and be registered for GST.
  • Be a business with a NSW site address and business operations in NSW. Commonwealth, state, and local government entities are not eligible for this funding.
  • Not be a Safeguard facility under the Australian Government’s Safeguard Mechanism.
  • Spend at least $200,000 annually on energy bills at a single site in NSW or a total of $500,000 across multiple sites in NSW. This includes all purchased fuels, except fuel for transport.
  • Must not have already been approved for grant funding under the Net Zero Planning Grant.
  • Not be a related entity to an entity or entities that have been successful in applying for this Grant, unless the main business operations in NSW of the related entities fall under different industry classification groups according to the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification 2006, as amended from time to time. In this case, up to 3 applications can be submitted in total, with a limit of one application per related entity.

For more information on the full eligibility and assessment criteria, please visit our website and read the funding guidelines.

2

Types of projects funded under this grant

This Net Zero Planning Grant will help identify the key actions needed to advance your business towards net zero and assist in addressing any gaps. This may include developing a greenhouse gas inventory, a net zero action plan or net zero targets. 

Please refer to the funding guidelines for more details.

3

What costs you can apply for

Cost of services provided by the specialist consultant(s) responsible for delivering grant milestone activities.

4

What costs you can't apply for

  • Costs incurred (i.e. paid for in full or through a deposit) before execution of the funding deed.
  • Internal project management and labour costs.
  • Costs associated with the purchase of carbon offsets.
  • Costs associated with any capital expenditure.
  • Costs associated with equipment or technology feasibility assessments.
  • Costs associated with actions required for mandatory reporting under the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) Scheme. 
  • Costs associated with external training and certification program fees, including auditing, verification and validation fees.
  • Costs for existing ongoing activities, for example, existing voluntary reporting.

Most recent recipients

All recipients (46)

What your application needs to include

1

Prepare your application with this checklist

  • Copies of energy bills for your business site(s).
  • Additional documents specific to the applicant may be required.
  • Before starting the application, please make sure you have read the funding guidelines.
2

Address the eligibility criteria

Each applicant, as part of an application response, must confirm that they meet the eligibility criteria.

Applicants that do not address the eligibility criteria in full may be excluded from the application process at the department's discretion.

3

Address the assessment criteria

You must address the below assessment criteria.

Objectives: The application demonstrates alignment with the grant objectives and a commitment to work towards net zero.

Quality: The information provided is accurate, up-to-date and legible.

Risks: The application does not raise any unacceptable reputational or delivery risks including:

  • pending legal action,
  • media controversy, or
  • lack of financial capacity to implement the grant milestone activities.

Start the application

Click on the “Apply Now” button to access the application form in the Grants Management System (GMS). Complete the application form and answer all the questions. Upload all the necessary documentation and submit the application form. Apply now because applications are assessed as they are received and will close on Friday 2 May at 5 pm (AEST) or earlier, if funding is exhausted.  

Note: If you are a new applicant to SmartyGrants, you will need to register and create a password. If you are already registered, you can log in with your existing username and password.


Apply now

After the application is submitted

Successful applications will be decided by: Program Manager

  • Applications will be assessed against the eligibility and assessment criteria outlined in the funding guidelines as they are received.
  • Independent technical and probity advisors may assist our assessment team in the assessment process.
  • We may request additional information as part of the assessment process. You will have 5 business days from the date of our written request to provide the requested information. If you do not respond by the due date, your application will not proceed.
  • You will receive an email notification within 20 business days of your application date confirming the outcome of your application. We reserve the right to extend this notification window if necessary and applicants will be notified accordingly.

Support and contact

For further information or clarification, please contact us at: energyefficiency.program@environment.nsw.gov.au

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