A lack of qualified assessors could cause a Green Deal bottleneck, according to Utilitywise, the energy and utilities consultancy.
It says that there are only five people in the country capable of carrying out Green Deal assessments on commercial premises, one of whom it employs. The assessments are required in order for funding from the scheme to be approved.
Utilitywise says that although there are currently more than 100 firms capable of carrying out assessments for the domestic green deal, the greater technical requirements for evaluating business energy use mean there are only five assessors in the UK at present who are capable of working with firms.
The company helps over 13,000 companies with their energy needs and also works with a number of commercial and public sector green energy funds to provide for access to finance to firms wanting to install energy saving measures.
It is currently planning to accredit two more non-domestic Green Deal assessors but its energy services director Tim Hipperson believes the Government could do more.
He said: 'We're currently in discussions with DECC over ways to speed up the assessment process and cut the costs of the scheme in order to get funding into the hands of businesses sooner rather than later.'
'As well as supporting individual businesses by reducing their overheads, the scheme has the potential to reduce the demand on the UK's antiquated energy infrastructure and go some way to mitigating the risk against security of supply.'
He continued: 'Owners of commercial properties are much better placed to take advantage of the green deal than consumers, because they understand the business model and can build it into their balance sheets.
'Companies, particularly those who haven't addressed their energy costs, could benefit significantly from the Green Deal but the scheme is struggling to gain any traction at present because of the lack of qualified assessors.'
