Bristol businesses looking to get cutting-edge ideas off the drawing board and into reality can apply for funding under a new scheme. The Business Innovation Fund – a three-year programme managed by the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) – will provide funding of either £20,000 or £50,000 for...
The energy team at Bristol-headquartered national law firm Burges Salmon have advised on another major UK battery storage scheme as the market continues to grow. Burges Salmon worked with investment management group Gresham House on its acquisition of two pre-construction transmission-connected battery projects from Arenko Cleantech, the battery software...
First West of England managing director James Freeman, whose 46-year career on the buses has taken him from conductor to leading an organisation with 1,800 people and 600 vehicles, has announced he is to retire next May. James, pictured, a self-confessed bus enthusiast who often spends his holidays travelling...
The owner of one of the UK’s largest solar power plant portfolios has expanded further with the help of Bristol-headquartered law firm Burges Salmon’s energy sector practice. A cross-firm team advised long-standing client Bluefield Solar on the acquisition and financing of 15 ground-mounted operational solar photovoltaic (PV) plants with...
Bristol-headquartered national law firm TLT has advised on a major battery storage project at Avonmouth which has given an international renewable energy group its first venture in the UK. TLT secured a 25-year lease on the site for Hallen Energy, part of the French-owned Voltalia Group. The site, which...
Firms in the South West are among the most pessimistic in the UK about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, with many expecting to shed jobs when the government’s furlough scheme ends, according to a new survey. The Lloyds Bank Business Barometer, which takes the pulse of 1,200 firms...
The coronavirus pandemic has hit profits at more than 60% of firms in the West of England – with nearly one-in-seven fearing they will never return to pre-Covid levels of activity, according to the largest business survey in the region. Just under a quarter of firms have, or plan...
A scheme aiming to make city leadership in Bristol more diverse by unlocking talent and helping people reach their potential is to be extended. Stepping Up, an innovative talent programme specifically for black and minority ethnic people, disabled people and women, was launched two-and-a-half years ago by Baroness McGregor-Smith,...
Researchers at Bristol’s yet-to-open £70m ‘car of the future’ centre are to work with engineers from luxury automotive firm Bentley Motors on a three-year study that promises to transform electric vehicles. The project, which will be among the first to be undertaken in the centre of excellence for ultra-low...
Development projects around Bristol ranging from a long-awaited new railway station and an upgrade of one of the city’s busiest roads to pioneering academic and industrial research have received financial support from a government scheme aimed at getting Britain building in the post-Covid era. The seven-strong list of projects...
South Bristol residents looking to start a business and existing companies looking to grow are to get expert advice from a new scheme launched this week. Bristol City Council is leading the partnership behind South Bristol Enterprise Support (SBES), which is offering access to expertise in a range of...
Bristol-based training consultancy Hewlett Rand has teamed up with a Chinese counterpart to launch an online programme to help companies navigate their way through what is being viewed as ‘the new normal’. With businesses across the globe facing enormous challenges – from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic to seismic shifts in...
Most firms in the South West remain cautious about their prospects as the coronavirus lockdown eases, according to the results of three business surveys released this week – but the region’s small manufacturers appear to be leading the bounce back. The surveys paint a mixed picture of the outlook...
