Grants for investment in SME production processes – ERDF Call for Proposals No. 1/2022

This is a non-repayable grant under the new ERDF Programme 2021–2027, aimed at supporting the revival of investment appetite amongst established businesses already operating in the market. The aim is to finance tangible and intangible productive investments and consultancy costs, thereby improving business processes and strengthening competitiveness.

Eligible initiatives

To access the grant, the company must submit a project proposal and details of the related expenditure to be incurred. The project submitted must consist of:

• the transformation of an existing production process;
• and/orthe introduction of a new production process in addition to those already in place within the company.

The investment for which the grant is sought must be carried out andlocated within the territory of the Autonomous Province of Trento, and the project must be completedwithin 18 monthsof the date on which the assessing body notifies the company of the decision to award the grant. 

Please refer to points 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the Noticefor the assessment criteria, the procedures for granting and disbursing the grant, and the project timetable.

Eligible expenditure

Eligible expenditure includes tangible and intangible investments, as well as consultancy fees. For further information on eligible expenditure (excluding VAT),please refer to Annex 1 of the Notice. 

The total eligible expenditure mustexceed 200,000 eurosand be within themaximum limit of 2,500,000 euros.

Grant scheme

The grant that the enterprise may receive is determined on the basis of the project cost, the chosen aid scheme (de minimis scheme orexemption scheme) and with reference to the expenditure deemed eligible. For further information on the grant scheme,please refer to point 4 of the Notice. 

From 7 February 2024, the grant under the de minimis scheme is awarded in accordance with the new Regulation 2023/2831. Until 30 June 2024, the grant may be awarded under the previous Regulation 1407/2014, as amended, only if this is more favourable to the applicant in terms of the aid ceiling.

In return for the grant received, the company must also fulfil a number of obligations, including:

• carrying out the approved project, whilst adhering to the deadlines for commencement, completion and reporting;
• not to dispose of, transfer or otherwise divert from their intended purpose the assets for which the financial assistance was granted within the five years following the date of the final payment of the grant to the beneficiary;

Further conditions are set out inAnnexes 5 and 6 of the Call for Applications, which relate to additional obligations on beneficiaries, as well as to the reporting, monitoring and publicity requirements concerning the funded projects.

A summary of the main communication requirements applicable to beneficiaries of the 2021–2027 ERDF Programme calls for proposals can be found at the following link.

Small and medium-sized enterprises that meet one of the following criteria:

• be registered in the Register of Companies of the Province of Trento, with their registered office and place of business within the territory of the Province of Trentoor with an active operational unit (indicated as a local unit in the Chamber of Commerce extract) within the provincial territory
• have their registered office and operational headquarters outside the territory of the Autonomous Province of Trento, but with an active operational unit within the provincial territory prior to the disbursement of the grant

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for the grant, the company must:

• have been incorporated for at least 3 yearsas at the date of submission of the grant application (the date of incorporation is taken to be the date of registration in the Register of Companies at the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Crafts and Agriculture with territorial jurisdiction);
• carry out an activity falling within one of the ATECO codeslisted in Annex 8: 
  ALLEGATO+8+%E2%80%93+TABELLA+A+%E2%80%93+Elenco+codici+ATECO+2007.pdf 337.98 kB
• have undergone, prior to submitting the grant application, anassessment carried outby an assessor accredited by Trentino Sviluppo following participation inthe public callfor the “formation of a list of assessors established by Trentino Sviluppo S.p.A. for the conduct of business assessments preparatory to participation in the support schemes provided for under the 2021–2027 ERDF Programme of the Autonomous Province of Trento”
• not be in a state of bankruptcy, liquidation (including voluntary liquidation), administration, composition with creditors or any other equivalent situation under current legislation
• not have any insolvency proceedings currently in progress
• not be an undertaking in difficulty within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 651/2014, unless authorised under de minimis aid or temporary State aid rules designed to address exceptional circumstances
• maintain standard accounting records

Assessment criteria

Applications for the grant will be assessed on a first-come, first-served basis.

The criteria used to assess eligibility for the grant are: general formal eligibility criteria, general substantive eligibility criteria, evaluation criteria and bonus criteria. Please refer to point 6of the Notice for details.

The body responsible for the preliminary assessment procedures is the assessing body:Trentino Sviluppo SpA.

Application submission and deadlines

Applications may be submitted, including by a representative,from 3.00 pm on 16 May 2022via the portal accessible below.

Full instructions on how to submit a grant application are available in this manual:

USER MANUAL FOR SUBMITTING APPLICATIONS – SIFESR portal (ERDF Call 1/2022: investments in SME production processes)

To submit an application, you must have adigital identity system(SPID) or anelectronic identity card (CIE).

TECHNICAL SUPPORT FOR THE PLATFORM

Anytechnical issues relating tothe use of the platform must be reported by email toassistenzafesrtn@performer.it, specifying your name, the company’s tax registration number, a telephone contact number and the application reference number (if available).
Technical support is availablefrom Monday to Friday, from 8.00 am to 6.00 pm(excluding public holidays).

• the assessment report, signed in original form and either scanned or digitally signed by an assessor accredited by Trentino Sviluppo (mandatory attachment)

Please refer to Annex 3 of the Noticefor further information on the documentation to be submitted.

Please refer to the timetable setting out the deadlines in point 9 of the Notice.