The Secretary of State for energy and Climate Change is calling on UK companies to take advantage of the £100 million in new loans that are being made available to help businesses become more energy efficient.

The vast majority will be delivered in England through the Carbon Trust's existing interest-free loans scheme for firms to buy new equipment, which will now be expanded three fold.

The announcement comes after a new investigation by the Carbon Trust showed that 40 areas of the UK have the greatest promise to save business money if they took action on climate change.

The Cost Map displays that collectively UK firms could save over £2.5 million through cost efficient carbon reduction steps, such as installing new lighting and replacing old boilers.

The £100 million in new funding, announced by the Budget, claims it will help companies save more than £20 million a year in energy bills, with yearly carbon dioxide savings of 140,000 firms.

The loans are to be provided in partnership with the Carbon Trust and Salix Finance and will be repayable over four years.

Carbon Trust

Ed Miliband, the secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change said: "Interest free loans totalling £100 million over the next two years were announced in the Budget, and this real help, delivered by the Carbon Trust in England, means that businesses in every corner of Britain can now improve their energy efficiency and make real savings on their energy bills at a time when every penny counts."

He continued: "British business is a global leader in the low carbon sector, but we must work hard to retain that leadership and realise the benefits of developing more sustainable business practices and low carbon technology. This is a central theme of the vision we launched in March for a Low Carbon Industrial Strategy and I welcome the work Carbon Trust is doing to advance this vital agenda."

Tom Delay, the chief executive of the Carbon Trust, said: "The additional funding for the Carbon Trust loans scheme means many more companies can take advantage of reducing costs by up to 20%, while also helping to reduce carbon emissions."

He added: "Our new map analysis shows the massive opportunity businesses have to reduce their costs by reducing their environmental impact. We urge UK businesses to prioritise action on carbon reduction and to contact the Carbon Trust to find out more about the free loans and other support available to help."

The regional Cost Map is based on Carbon Trust's estimates of cost-savings that can be achieved by businesses across the UK following an in-depth analysis of data from external parties.

Sectors will benefit from new scheme

This new energy loan will help hospitals, community centres and local authorities too, as loans will be made available for 80 different technologies such as cooling systems and information technology improvements.

Joan Ruddock, the minister for energy and climate change, said: "We estimate this fund could help public sector bodies save around £14 million per year in fuel bills. Following the announcement of our ambitious carbon budgets, all public sector organisations should lead by example by pioneering ways to reduce carbon emissions."

It is hoped that the financial aid will help public-sector bodies to meet the Carbon Reduction Commitment, a programme starting in April 2010. The programe has set targets for groups who are using more than 6,000MWh of electricity per year.