EU Funds available for Businesses in Malta through a new call of €12M in European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) grants for enterprise

Closing date: noon of Friday 26th March 2010

Following the success of the first two calls for projects to be funded under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) schemes Malta Enterprise is today issuing another €12.7 million by opening up a third call for its seven ERDF Scheme  intended to co-finance projects relating to International Competitiveness, Business Start-ups, Innovation, Environment, Research & Development (R&D), e-Business, and Renewable Energy projects.

As announced by the Minister of Finance during the last budget speech another €7 Million have been added to the existing €30 million. It is expected that, for most of the schemes, the call announced today will be the last one as it is likely that all available funds will be committed.  The take-up so far has been quite high with around €24,266,000 in grants having been awarded through the following Schemes funding 392 projects, 20 of which were in Gozo.

The ERDF International Competitiveness Scheme has awarded 80 projects for a total grant of €4,991,856 during the first two calls.  A budget of €2,000,000 remains for the third call.  This scheme assists companies with 50% of the cost of specific projects aimed at accessing markets abroad.

The ERDF Small Start-ups Scheme awarded 23 projects for a total grant of €1,487,000 during the first two calls.  A budget of €1,000,000 remains for the third call.  This scheme assists eligible start-up companies with 25% of their operational costs.

The ERDF Innovation scheme awarded 54 projects for a total grant of €4,041,000 during the first two calls.  A budget of €2,959,000 now remains for the third call.  This scheme aims at stimulating innovative processes, products, services and even organisational changes within eligible SMEs as well as the.

The ERDF Environment (Eco-innovation) Scheme awarded 12 projects for a total grant of €777,609 during the first two calls.  A budget of €2,222,391 now remains for the third call.  This scheme assists eligible SMEs to implement projects aimed at improving their environmental performance (beyond compliance) in terms of emissions into the air, water and waste management.  This can include projects aimed at obtaining certification to recognised environmental management systems.

The ERDF E-Business Scheme awarded 61 projects for a total grant of €2,510,000.  A budget of €990,000 now remains for the third call.  This scheme is aimed at assisting companies to upgrade and improve their e-business capabilities.  This scheme is now also been open to the retail sector.

The ERDF R&D Scheme awarded 19 projects for a total grant of €2,200,000 during one call.  A budget of €2,300,000 now remains for the second call.  This scheme encourages companies to provide new products and services to the market through industrial research and experimental development.

The ERDF Energy Scheme awarded 149 projects for a total grant value of €8,580,000.  A budget of €1,420,000 now remains for the third call.  This scheme co-finances projects which improve the energy efficiency of an enterprise, or which generate energy from renewable sources.

Malta Enterprise Executive Chairman Alan Camilleri, said that the announcement of the third call is timely as industry and business is gearing up for a year of opportunity in terms of investment and business growth. “While business sentiment is showng signs of recovery following the negative outcomes of 2009, the pumping of an additional €12 million into business goes a long way to entice business and enterprise to seize the moment and use these funds to reinvent themselves, expand their horizons and to seek ways how to become leaner and smarter in the management of the operational expenses. Growth and success needs to be spurred by a balance between cost reduction and market expansion and this is precisely what these schemes intend to achieve.”

More information on the calls announced today, including detailed guidelines, eligibility criteria, and application forms can be obtained by calling the Malta Enterprise helpline on 2542 2020 or online by logging onto http://energy.maltaenterprise.com/ (Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy) and http://www.20millionforindustry.com/ (all other ERDF schemes administered by Malta Enterprise).   This call closes on Friday 26th March 2010 at noon

Source: http://www.maltaenterprise.com/News_details.aspx?ID=155