Businesses want the government to consider grants rather than tax credits for those that invest in energy efficiency.

They believe that tax credits were not as attractive to them as actual grants, which, they argue, could help with their capital expenditure and cash flow.

The proposal was made by the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry’s Energy and Environment Committee as part of a consultation process under way for the 2030 National Energy and Climate Plan.

In a letter to the Energy and Water Agency, committee chairman David Xuereb argued that tax credits were no longer an attractive instrument to drive private sector investment, especially in areas such as energy efficiency, where the return on investment tended to exceed a medium-term period of three to five years.

“The Malta Chamber firmly believes that, in order to have more notable and effective take-up of support schemes for energy efficiency investment projects in the private sector, support measures and/or incentives must be given in the form of grants,” Mr Xuereb wrote.

“Increased investment in energy efficiency by the private sector has played, and will continue to play, a vital role in the attainment of the national energy efficiency and other climate-related targets. So, it is of primary im-portance that the private sector is offered support measures that are attractive and in line with their present and future needs,” he said.