£150,000 backing helps Duncan grow

York-based Duncan Renewables began life as a traditional plumbing business, run by Stuart Duncan.

He was joined three years ago by brother Mark who left his corporate career after spotting the potential for the firm to expand into the installation of renewable energy systems.

The company has gone on to establish itself as a supplier of biomass and solar systems, with several high profile commercial installations including Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate.

Duncan Renewables, which employs 40 staff, has also tripled its turnover – from less than £2m in its first trading year to more than £6m in the last financial year but needed investment to ensure it could continue to meet customer demand.

Now the business is benefiting from a £150,000 business loan from Finance Yorkshire.

Mark said: “The money has meant we can bulk purchase our Austrian-made boilers allowing us to meet the surging demand for our products.

“We are already a leading supplier in our industry in Yorkshire and in five years I’d like to see us extending our services and broadening our reach even further across the North of England.

“New measures like the domestic Renewable Heat Incentive scheme – where the Government pays customers a subsidy for switching to non-fossil fuel-dependent energy methods – also mean we could potentially go on to double our turnover in the short term.”

Finance Yorkshire investment manager Ian Atkinson said: “The company has expanded rapidly under the Duncan Renewables brand to become a leading supplier of biomass systems and has an impressive range of installation projects in the pipeline.

“The loan will accelerate further expansion.”