Greg Barker, Minister of Energy & Climate Change, recently toured Grant Engineering UK, where he also announced an additional £150,000 of funding for the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) voucher training scheme.

Mr Barker had a tour of the renewable heating manufacturer’s facility, and was able to see an early preview of the new Grant Vecta condensing wood-pellet boiler, which is to be unveiled at Ecobuild in March.

The domestic RHI Scheme is due to launch this spring. The Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) will be running events across the country to promote and educate both installers and consumers with an investment which now totals £650,000, aimed at raising the skill set of domestic heating engineers.

Grant’s training partner GTEC, represented at the Minister’s visit by managing director Griff Thomas, has already received government funding under the RHI voucher training scheme and will support Grant in the programme from their facility based in North Yorkshire. Whilst with Grant, Greg Barker presented local installer David Croker of Croker Partnerships with a voucher from the scheme.

Paul Wakefield, managing director, said: “We are delighted to have met with the Minister today and the additional RHI voucher training funding is very welcome news. As a business we always look to drive the industry forward, and are taking great strides in educating individuals and implementing these new initiatives. Our ethos has always been to design and manufacture products that are energy efficient and reduce heating costs, which is no more apparent than with the new Grant Vecta.”

Mr Barker said: “Today’s announcement is a positive reflection on the industry’s enthusiasm for the government’s push towards renewable heating. I am delighted to announce this additional funding, which should be taken as yet another sign of DECC’s commitment to renewable heating and the imminent arrival of the domestic RHI this spring.

“By incorporating renewable heating into the businesses of many off-gas grid installers, consumers unsure about their next heating system will be able to more easily access knowledgeable, trusted sources of advice in their home.”

Claire Perry, MP for the Devizes Constituency, also attended the event. She added: “Energy costs are a real concern for householders and I welcome these efforts to make renewable technologies more affordable and accessible. I am particularly excited about the innovation of the new Grant Vecta as I feel this could change consumers’ lives dramatically, for the better. I would also like to thank Grant for their generous donation of a boiler to a local charity project close to my heart – Sunflowers at Grafton, a community run, not-for-profit childcare organisation.”