Brussels, 24 March 2011 – The KIS-PIMS closing seminar: ‘Vouchers for renewable energy service innovators’ presented the findings of the first sector-specific innovation voucher test to over 50 public energy agencies and innovation stakeholders.
For three years the project led by a public-private partnership developed, tested and implemented the first sector specific vouchers for innovation services. The seminar provided a unique opportunity to debate the use of sector-specific innovation vouchers and to draw conclusions from a voucher scheme, which tested the access to business expertise for renewable energy service innovators. “Testing the KIS-PIMS vouchers was an interesting experience since this small and non-bureaucratic grant allowed us to attract many SMEs who have never used public funding before”, said Jacques Gautray from the French Innovation Agency OSEO, one of the consortium partners. For the Styrian Energy Agency LEV, Christian Sakulin confirmed this view and added that, “LEV has been able to support small and new players using financing mechanisms that are normally too slow and too complicated for fast-moving innovators”.
During the occasion, the consortium presented the brochure ‘Guide to green innovation vouchers‘, to mark the closure of the project. The brochure discusses the concept of green innovation vouchers and illustrates it with numerous case studies and examples for the use of vouchers in combination with green public procurement, structural funds, energy audits and many more.
About KIS-PIMS
KIS-PIMS vouchers
For further details please contact Katharina Krell, or click here to see the end-of-project brochure.