Businesses seeking to market cutting-edge technology products that reduce UK carbon emissions should consider seeking help from the Carbon Trust’s incubator scheme.

The scheme, which has assisted 58 new ventures, is administered by four firms: The Technology Partnership, Imperial Innovation, ISIS Innovations and Angle.

Over the past four years the Carbon Trust Angle Incubator scheme has worked with more than 20 companies developing new technologies such as fuel cells, wind turbines, photovoltaics, tidal and wave energy and bio-mass generation. Two of these firms subsequently have been listed on AIM and the remainder have raised more than £25 million in private investment between them during the incubation period — from six to 18 months — and the following year.

The scheme helped the companies to raise more than £60 million from private sources. One product has already been launched while others, such as prototype fuel cells, are still in development. Mark Bornhoft, the programme’s project manager, said the criteria for acceptance on the scheme are that the technology works — it must be past the research and development stage and in the demonstration stage — and that the technology could lead to a significant reduction in UK carbon emissions.

Applicants must be UK companies owning the intellectual property they hope to market. They should also show that without assistance from the scheme there would be a significant risk that they would not be able to commercialise their technology.

The Carbon Trust also offers research and development grants to help companies to develop new technologies before they are eligible for inclusion in the scheme.

The incubating firms such as Angle will examine how the new product differs from what is available and whether there is a market for it. They will also assist with business development, strategy formulation, building a business team, market research, protecting intellectual property rights, product planning, presentation training, preparing a business plan and identifying potential investors.

Angle has assisted university spin-off firms, corporate spin-outs, private startups and SMEs that are developing new technologies. Nearly half the firms it has advised have been making technologies that cut energy consumption. Each company can draw on up to £60,000 of Carbon Trust support and guidance. For example, Angle has helped Green Biologics, which uses advanced fermentation technology to produce biofuels; Scotrenewables, a tidal energy developer; and Whitfield Solar, which makes lenses that concentrate light on photovoltaic cells.

Businesses entering Angle’s programme have been referred to it by the Carbon Trust, other organisations or have been identified by Angle itself.

Companies that have not succeeded in the marketplace include those whose technology was not strong enough competitively or whose team has not had the time or stamina to get ventures off the ground. Companies in the incubator scheme must be able to support themselves financially.

If a company approaches Angle for support, the latter examines its business proposition and, if it qualifies for help, submits an application to the Carbon Trust, which then considers how best to support it.

Companies in incubators can seek financial backing from venture capital firms such as Scottish Equity Partners, which has a £150 million investment fund and was named venture capital firm of the year last year. One of the areas it invests in is clean technology renewables and alternative energy sources. David Sneddon, a partner in Scottish Equity’s energy technology group, said the company was ready to invest early on provided the business had proof of concept — for example, a working model offering reasonable hope that the product would work.

Companies it has invested in include ArkEx, which has developed technology for the airborne detection of onshore oil, gas and mineral deposits. This makes it easier to identify reserves and decide where to drill without having to hack through environmentally sensitive areas. The same fundamentals apply to low-carbon products as to other products, Sneddon said. You have to know your customer, understand your product and make sure it matches your customers’ needs. You must be able to see a point where the business has turnover and makes a profit.

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