Deadline: 13 May 2019
The programme “Green ICT” objective is increased value creation and sustainable growth in Estonia’s private sector. The programme aims to stimulate and develop innovation-led long-term business cooperation between Estonia and Norway. For this bilateral cooperation projects are initiated to enhance joint business ambitions and innovation in green ICT. The programme targets 50% of funds to be allocated to Green Industry Innovation (GII). This is done by encouraging innovation and resource efficiency in ICT-based products, services and processes.
The programme has three focus areas, GII, ICT and Welfare Technology (WT), with ICT as a horizontal element across GII and WT. The programme will thus consist of two main pillars: development and application of innovative ICT-led green products, services and processes in the area of GII and ICT, and development of new products and services in the area of WT. The Programme strategy is in line with the EU and Estonian national policies and strategies
The programme specific outcome is “Increased competitiveness of Estonian companies within focus areas Green Industry Innovation, ICT and Welfare Technology”. The expected outputs of the programme are:
- Enterprises supported to develop or apply innovative green products, services and
- Enterprises supported to develop innovative ICT products, services and processes.
- Enterprises supported to develop innovative welfare products, services and processes.
Funding Information
- Small Grant Scheme budget is 1,200,000 euros.
- Minimum amount of the grant is 10,000 euros per project and maximum amount is 20,000 euros.
- Project length is up to 4 month.
Eligible Activities
- The activities of the small grant scheme Projects should contribute to at least one of the programme focus areas: Green Industry Innovation, information and communication technologies (ICT), welfare technology, and includes ICT projects in the focus areas of Green Industry Innovation and Welfare Technology.
- This small grant scheme supports the preparation of the applications to the main call, including following activities:
- preparing the feasibility plan of a developed product, service or process (including technical feasibility studies, market research, analyses, expertise, business plan);
- developing the forecast of the main call Project impact and the underlying evaluation methodology, which opens and analyses the resource savings resulting from the project (energy, CO2, human resources, etc.);
- preparing the communication plan of the main call Project;
- carrying out information research on the industrial property of the product, service or process being developed;
- conducting partner search in Estonia and Norway (including the organisation of meetings, seminars, and workshops in Estonia and Norway);
- other activities directly contributing to the preparation of the main call Project.
Criteria
- Eligible applicants are companies registered in Estonia. The project partners may include all legal entities registered in Estonia or Norway (e.g. companies, non-profit associations, associations, foundations, universities).
- The Partnership agreement is a prerequisite for the implementation of the partnership project.
- In case of the Partnership agreement, the partners can make eligible costs, contribute to the project activities and are granted within the Project.
- The applicant and partner(s) shall comply with the following requirements:
- the applicant’s tax arrears or payment in arrears inclusive of interest does not exceed 100 euros, or these have been rescheduled;
- the applicant should have duly complied with the obligation to submit tax returns established in tax legislation and regulations;
- no liquidation or bankruptcy proceedings have been initiated against or bankruptcy decisions made concerning the applicant or person controlling the applicant;
- the applicant has the required funds for the financing of the project in accordance with the limits and terms and conditions established;
- an applicant who has previously received grants through Enterprise Estonia from budgetary, the European Union or foreign aid resources, which have been subject to recovery, the repayments should have been made in a timely and required manner;
- the applicant of de minimize aid should not receive or should not have received de minimize aid within the meaning of the regulation on de minimize aid more than 200,000 euros as part of the Programme over the current financial year and two previous ones.
- If an enterprise operates in the field of road transport, the corresponding threshold is 100,000 euros (EMTAK 2008, section H, sub-sections 493 and 494).
- If an enterprise has received de minimize aid to be provided to an enterprise providing a service of general economic interest (within the meaning of European Commission’s Regulation No. 360/2012), the total amount of aid granted on the basis of the regulation on de minimize aid and European Commission’s Regulation No. 360/2012 cannot exceed 500,000 euros over the current financial year and two previous ones.
How to Apply
Projects shall be submitted electronically through the Enterprise Estonia e-service via given website.
For more information, please visit https://www.eas.ee/teenus/norwaygrants/?lang=en