SBCI Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme

Eligibility Criteria

Definitions

For the purposes of the Agreement:

“Additional Borrower Eligibility Criteria” means that the Borrower under the Borrower Transaction covered by a Financing:

(a) has been deemed eligible to participate in the SBCI Scheme by the SBCI and the Borrower has been issued with a unique eligibility code which is verified by the Finance Provider; and

(b) has self-declared the category and asset from the Triple E Register[1] which the Financing will be used to fund, which includes:

(i) building energy management systems;

(ii) lighting;

(iii) motors and drivers;

(iv) information and communications technology (ICT);

(v) heating and electricity provision;

(vi) alternative fuel vehicles and electric vehicles’ charging equipment[2];

(vii) process and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) control systems;

(viii) catering and hospitality equipment[3];

(ix) electro-mechanical systems; and

(x) refrigeration and cooling systems.

“Borrower Eligibility Criteria” means that the Borrower under the Borrower Transaction covered by a Financing:

(a) is an SME;

(b) is not in an Exclusion Situation;

(c) is not subject to collective insolvency proceedings and does not fulfil the criteria under its domestic law for being placed in collective insolvency proceedings at the request of its creditors;

(d) is not an “undertaking in difficulty” (within the meaning of the Commission Regulation (EU) No C(2014) 651/2014 of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty as amended, restated, supplemented and/or substituted from time to time;

(e) does not have a substantial focus on one or more Restricted Sectors;

(f) is not delinquent[4] or in default under any agreement with the Finance Provider or another financial institution pursuant to checks made in accordance with the Finance Provider’s internal guidelines and Credit and Collection Policies;

(g) is not established and operating in a Non-Cooperative Jurisdiction;

(h) is established in a country authorised to participate in COSME and operating in Ireland;

(i) is not performing illegal activities according to applicable legislation in the country of the SBCI, the Finance Provider or the Borrower (including national, Union and international legislation, including the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights and its Supplementary Protocols);

(j) is established and operating in a participating Member State;

(k) is not a Sanctioned Person and is not in breach of EU Restrictive Measures;

(l) is not subject to any preferential tax measures regarded as harmful under the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes;

(m) is not bankrupt or being wound up or having its affairs administered by the courts;

(n) in the last 5 years has not entered into an arrangement with its creditors, in the context of being bankrupt or wound-up or having its affairs administered by the courts;

(o) has not been convicted of an offence or subject to a ruling concerning professional conduct, fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organisation, money laundering or any other illegal activity where such illegal activity is detrimental to the EU’s financial interests;

(p) where the Borrower under the Borrower Transaction covered by a Financing is an SME active in any sector other than (i) the fishery and aquaculture sector and (ii) the primary agricultural sector, the following additional Borrower Eligibility Criteria shall apply to that Borrower:

(i) it is not active in the fishery and aquaculture sector;

(ii) it is not active in the primary production of agricultural products;

(iii) it is not active in the sector of processing and marketing of agricultural products in the following cases:

(A) where the amount of the Financing is fixed on the basis of the price or the quantity of such products purchased from Primary Producers or put on the market by the Borrower; and

(B) where the aid is conditional upon being partly or entirely passed on to Primary Producers;

(iv) it has not received, including under the applicable Financing, Aid in excess of what is permitted under the General De Minimis Regulation;

(q) where the Borrower under the Borrower Transaction covered by a Financing is an SME active in the fishery and aquaculture sector, the following additional Borrower Eligibility Criteria shall apply to that Borrower:

(i) it is not active in any sector other than the fishery and aquaculture sector;

(ii) it is not active in the primary production of agricultural products;

(iii) it has not received, including under the applicable Financing, Aid in excess of what is permitted under the Fishery De Minimis Regulation;

(r) where the Borrower under the Borrower Transaction covered by a Financing is an SME active in the primary agricultural sector, the following additional Borrower Eligibility Criteria shall apply to that Borrower:

(i) it is a Primary Producer;

(ii) it is not active in any sector other than in the primary production of agricultural products;

(iii) it is not subject to an outstanding recovery order following a previous Commission decision declaring an aid illegal and incompatible with the internal market;

(iv) it is not an “undertaking in difficulty” within the meaning of ABER;

(v) it has not received, including under the applicable Financing, Aid in excess of what is permitted under ABER;

(vi) it has confirmed that the Financing will pursue either of the following objectives:

(A) the improvement of the overall performance and sustainability of the agricultural holding, in particular through a reduction of production costs or the improvement and re-deployment of production; or

(B) the creation and improvement of infrastructure related to the development, adaptation and modernisation of agriculture, including access to farm land, land consolidation and improvement, the supply and saving of energy and water;

(vii) where the asset to be acquired by the Borrower is either a wind-turbine or a solar thermal collector, then the following additional criteria shall apply:

(A) the Financing must be linked to the production of either (i) at farm-level of biofuels or (ii) of energy from renewable sources, and such production shall not exceed the average annual consumption of fuels or energy of the relevant farm; and

(B) where the Financing is made for the production of thermal energy and electricity from renewable sources on agricultural holdings:

(I) the production facilities shall serve only the energy needs of the Borrower;

(II) the production capacity of the production facilities shall be no more than the equivalent to the combined average annual energy consumption of thermal energy and electricity on the agricultural holding, including the farm household; and

(III) the Borrower shall only sell electricity to the national grid in circumstances where the annual self-consumption limit is respected;

(viii) where the asset to be acquired by the Borrower is a biomass boiler, then the following additional criteria shall apply:

(B) the production capacity of the production facilities shall be no more than the equivalent to the annual average transport fuel consumption of the agricultural holding and any biofuels produced must not be sold to any third party;

(C) where the Financing is made for the production of thermal energy and electricity from renewable sources on agricultural holdings:

(I) the production facilities shall serve only the energy needs of the Borrower;

(III) the Borrower shall only sell electricity to the national grid in circumstances where the annual self-consumption limit is respected;

(D) the Financing’s primary purpose is not for the production of electricity from biomass;

(E) the maximum proportion of the crop used for bioenergy production, including biofuels, does not exceed the threshold set by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, SEAI or any other relevant national body or authority and the project meets all applicable sustainability criteria set out in EU and Irish law.

“Borrower Transaction Eligibility Criteria” means the following criteria:

(a) the Borrower Transaction is entered into as a new Borrower Transaction with the Finance Provider during the Inclusion Period (provided that the refinancing of an existing transaction before the maturity date of such existing transaction shall not be eligible);

(b) the Borrower Transaction provides funding for purposes of investing in the energy efficiency of the enterprise through financing of an asset listed on the SEAI’s Triple E Product Register[5];

(c) no more than 20% of the principal amount of the Borrower Transaction may be applied towards ancillary costs related to the investment in the assets (for example installation costs);

(d) the Borrower Transaction is a term loan, hire purchase or asset finance product;

(e) the Borrower Transaction is unsecured or secured by the asset being financed only and does not have the benefit of personal guarantees;

(f) the Borrower Transaction has a fixed repayment schedule;

(g) the Borrower Transaction provides for a maximum amount of principal committed to be available for utilisation of not more than EUR 150,000 in aggregate per Borrower and not less than EUR 10,000 in aggregate per Borrower;

(h) the Borrower Transaction has a minimum scheduled maturity of not less than 12 months and a maximum scheduled maturity of 10 years;

(i) the Borrower Transaction provides that the interest rate (or equivalent) charged by the Finance Provider with respect to such Borrower Transaction reflects the applicable Pricing Discount;

(j) the Borrower Transaction is denominated in euro;

(k) the documents evidencing the relevant Financing or, as applicable, Borrower Transaction contain the terms set out in Schedule 11 (Terms and Conditions for Insertion in Borrower Transactions) hereto;

(l) the Borrower Transaction complies with any criteria set down in the Operating Model from time to time;

(m) the Borrower Transaction covered by the relevant Financing must not be used for the purposes of financing:

(i) electric vehicles;

(ii) export-related activities towards third countries or other EU Member States (namely, aid directly linked to the quantities exported), or the establishment and operation of a distribution network or to other current expenditure linked to the export activity;

(iii) which is contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods;

(iv) activities forbidden by national or EU law;

(v) in Restricted Sectors;

(vi) activities constituting pure financial transactions; and

(vii) where the Borrower Transaction is covered by Article 14 of ABER, the Borrower Transaction covered by the relevant Financing must also not be used for the following additional purposes:

(A) to support the purchase of production rights, payment entitlements and annual plants;

(B) to support the planting of annual plants;

(D) to support investments made so as to comply with EU standards in force;

(E) to support the purchase of animals; or

(F) to acquire land;

(viii) where the Borrower Transaction is covered by the Fishery De Minimis Regulation, the Borrower Transaction covered by the relevant Financing must also not be used for the following additional purposes:

(A) for a Financing where the amount of the Financing is fixed on the basis of price or quantity of products purchased or put on the market;

(B) to support the purchase of fishing vessels;

(D) to support operations increasing the fishing capacity of a vessel or equipment increasing the ability of a vessel to find fish;

(E) to support the construction of new fishing vessels or importation of fishing vessels;

(F) to support the temporary or permanent cessation of fishing activities unless specifically provided for in Regulation (EU) No. 508/2014;

(G) to support exploratory fishing;

(H) to support the transfer of ownership of a business;

(I) to support direct restocking, unless explicitly provided for as a conservation measure by an EU legal act or in the case of experimental restocking;

(n) where the Borrower Transaction is covered by Article 14 of ABER, the aid intensity or total aid resulting from the Financing must not exceed 40% of the amount of the eligible costs in accordance with Article 14(12) of ABER;

(o) the Borrower Transaction does not finance transactions with a Sanctioned Person;

(p) the documents governing the Borrower Transaction are legal, valid, binding and enforceable under applicable law;

(q) the Borrower Transaction should be provided in compliance with the De Minimis Regulation and/or ABER (as appropriate);

(r) the Borrower Transaction does not finance Illegal Activities or artificial arrangements aimed at tax avoidance;

(s) the Borrower Transaction is made available in a participating Member State;

(t) the Borrower Transaction is not affected by Irregularity or fraud;

(u) if the Borrower Transaction is a lease, it shall be in the form of a Finance Lease, as set out in Schedule 12 (Finance Leases) of this Agreement;

(v) the Borrower Transaction must comply with the terms of this Agreement relating to the Pricing Discount; and

(w) the Borrower Transaction Documents for a Borrower Transaction provide that the Pricing Discount is either equal to or greater than a minimum of 1%.

“Finance Provider Eligibility Criteria” means that the Finance Provider:

(a) shall not be established in a Non-Cooperative Jurisdiction;

(b) shall not be engaged in any Illegal Activities;

(d) is not in an Exclusion Situation;

(e) shall be a financial institution or credit institution duly authorised, if applicable, to carry out lending or leasing activities to businesses in Ireland according to applicable legislation;

(f) does not focus its business on one or more of the Restricted Sectors;

(g) shall be established and operating in a Participating Country; and

(h) is not performing illegal activities according to applicable legislation in the country of Ireland or, if different, the country of the Finance Provider or the Borrower (including national, Union and international legislation, including the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights and its Supplementary Protocols).

[1] https://www.seai.ie/business-and-public-sector/triple-e-register-for-products/

[2] Whilst included on the Triple E Products Register, Electric Vehicles (EVs) are not eligible assets which can be financed under the SBCI Scheme. However, charging equipment for EVs are eligible assets which can be financed under the SBCI Scheme.

[3] Comprises: commercial combination ovens; commercial dishwashers; commercial water boilers; commercial laundry dryers and/or commercial laundry washers.

[4] Delinquent means in arrears < 90 days (90 days or greater is therefore in default).

[5] https://www.seai.ie/business-and-public-sector/triple-e-register-for-products/