ICT 4 Growth

This is a summary of the key aspects of the “ICT 4 Growth” state funding program, from the Special Secretariat for Digital Planning. The “ICT 4 Growth” program aims to provide guaranteed state funds through the NSRF framework, to private enterprises or consortia of private enterprises that are planning to implement significant development plans (300k€ – 20m€) for developing innovative technology products and value added services in Greece, which are based on ICT. Development plans may be up to 24 months in duration; the state cash subsidy can be OPEX & CAPEX and may reach up to 80% of the expenditure budget, for specific situations.
The program is geared to help existing and startup Greek enterprises to create consortia with enterprises from abroad, the state aid will be provided only to the Greek enterprises that are investing in Greece. There is no domain restriction with respect to the product / services that will be developed, the following examples are provided as guidelines:

• Energy and Green development (products & services for smart grids, energy resource management, renewable energy resource management, etc.)
• Agriculture, Fisheries, Foods (traceability & food safety, automated management of agricultural installations, etc.)
• Tourism, Culture and Entertainment (on-line gaming, destination management, virtual tours, etc.)
• Health & Social Security (support for the elderly or long term patients, telemedicine, etc.)
• Electronic Communications,
• Transportation,
• Internet (social web, semantic web, internet of things, etc.)

The value added services that will be created in the scope of the program should exploit modern Information and Communiation Technologies like:

• Virtualization (Servers, Storage, Networks, Apps, Desktops)
• Cloud Computing
• Energy Efficiency & Monitoring (IT efficiency & reuse, Reduce of energy consumption,)
• Unified Communications (Technology issues (Mobile platforms / Integration of corporate and social media streams), Organizational issues)
• Big Data (Unstructured Data, Duplication of Data, Storage – thin provisioning, Security, Backup – Storage Resource Management, Compression etc)
• Cloud Computing
• Grid Technology
• Web 2.0
• Internet of Things
• Open platforms & Open Source software and applications
• Social Networks and business
• Media / digital marketing
• Mobile services – smart devices and applications evolution
• Location based services / GIS

Program Overview
Funding Body	Ministry of Development, Competitiveness and Shipping, Special Secretariat for Digital Planning, InfoSociety S.A.
Target	To strengthen existing and augment new businesses through the implementation of technological innovation investment projects, aiming to develop new, value added products & services. These investments will be aimed mainly to: Foster healthy enterprises with the appropriate use of ICT. Substantial strengthening of the ICT services sector of the Greek economy (in terms of competitiveness and extroversion). Creating new products, services and added value content which may have commercial potential and viability.
Beneficiaries & Conditions	The beneficiaries are private enterprises (existing, newly established, startups) or consortiums, regardless of legal form, operating legally in Greece. Note that the participation of enterprises operating outside the Greek territory (foreign companies) is possible through the formation of a consortium, provided that: The consortium includes at least one enterprise operating legally in the Greek territory, which will assume the role of Coordinator, Foreign enterprises are not subsidized by the project and their funding must originate from their own resources, Foreign enterprises participation brings mutual benefits for participants in the consortium (eg technology transfer, etc.), as well as wider benefits for the Greek economy in line with the aims and objectives of the funding program. Any enterprise wishing to participate in the funding program, individually or in a consortium, has the right to make / deliver only one project proposal.
Eligible Project Categories	The eligible development projects are divided into 2 categories: Category I: Medium-sized projects, budget from 300.000 € to 5.000.000 € Category II: Development projects of significant scope, budget from 5.000.000 € to 20.000.000 € (special conditions apply)
Project Maturity Phase	The funding proposals to be considered by the program may be in the following maturity phase: Phase A: Research, Planning and Development of new products / services (R & D stage) Phase B: Commercialization of new products / services (commercialization stage). Submitted proposals can either include Phase A and Phase B or only Phase B. Proposals for Phase A only will not be considered.
Activities Eligible for Funding	Eligible Activities Phase A A1: Preparation & planning. A2: Industrial research. A3: Operations Development. A4: Acquisition of industrial property rights (eligible only for SMEs). A5: Operations management, support and coordination of research & development. Eligible Activities Phase B B1: Installations and commissioning of production facilities. B2: Preparation of end product / service. B3: Business networking (eligible only for SMEs).
Project Duration	The total project implementation period may not exceed 24 months. Phase A cannot exceed 18 months, starting from the date of approval of the investment proposal. The total duration of project implementation of investment plans that cover only Phase B cannot exceed 18 months.
Eligible Costs & Funding Rates	Eligible Expenditure in Phase A Activity Small Enterprise Medium Enterprise Large Enterprise A1: Preparation & Operations Planning (up to 5% of budget) 50% 50% 40% A2: Industrial research (individual enterprise, up 25% of budget) 70% 60% 50% A2: Industrial Research (consortium, to 25% of budget) 80% 75% 65% A3: Development (individual enterprise, up 25% of budget) 45% 35% 25% A3: Development (consortium, to 25% of budget) 60% 50% 40% A4: Acquisition of industrial property rights (individual enterprise, up to 5% of budget) 45% 35% 0% A4: acquisition of industrial property (consortium, up to 5% of budget) 60% 50% 0% A5: Operations management, support and coordination of research & development (individual enterprise, there are limitations on the budget) 45% 35% 25% A5: Operations management, support and coordination of research & development (consortium, there are limitations to the budget) 60% 50% 40% Eligible Expenditure in Phase B Activity Small Enterprise Medium Enterprise Large Enterprise B1: Installations and commissioning of production facilities 35% S. Greece, South Aegean 40% Attica 50% Thessaly, Ionian Islands, Crete, Peloponnese, North Aegean, Western Macedonia, Central.Macedonia 60% of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Epirus, Western.Greece 25% S. Greece, South Aegean 30% Attica 40% Thessaly, Ionian Islands, Crete, Peloponnese, North Aegean, Western Macedonia, Central.Macedonia 50% of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Epirus, Western.Greece 15% S. Greece, South Aegean 20% Attica 30% Thessaly, Ionian Islands, Crete, Peloponnese, North Aegean, Western Macedonia, Central.Macedonia 40% of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Epirus, Western.Greece B2: Preparation of end product / service (up to 50% of the budget of Phase B except B3) 35% S. Greece, South Aegean 40% Attica, Western Macedonia, Central.Macedonia 50% Thessaly, Ionian Islands, Crete, Peloponnese, North Aegean 60% of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Epirus, Western.Greece 25% S. Greece, South Aegean 30% Attica, Western Macedonia, Central.Macedonia 40% Thessaly, Ionian Islands, Crete, Peloponnese, North Aegean 50% of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Epirus, Western.Greece 15% S. Greece, South Aegean 20% Attica, Western Macedonia, Central.Macedonia 30% Thessaly, Ionian Islands, Crete, Peloponnese, North Aegean 40% of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Epirus, Western.Greece B3: Business networking (up to 30% of the budget of Phase B) 50% 50% 0
Financial Scheme	It is mandatory to prove the ability of the enterprise or consortium to finance with its own contribution at least the 25% of the total project budget. This means:  For existing enterprises, either an increase of the company’s capital by cash contribution of the shareholders, or use of existing taxed reserves (not the the statutory reserves) For newly established enterprises the initial capital and any increases with cash contributions For startups the amount of planned capital resulting from contributions in cash, the future shareholders must produce evidence of capital availability.
Approval, Contract, Performance and State Subsidy Payments	After the approval of the proposal, the following schedule will be followed:  A Contract between the intermediary body and the Enterprise will be signed. The Enterprise must deposit a performance guarantee of 10% of the budgeted cost. The Enterprise may receive up to 30% of the subsidy in advance by submitting a Bank Guarantee Letter. Every 6 months the project will be audited (physical and financial progress) and partial payments of the grant will be made. The 20% of the grant will be retained until the final audit & certification, a formal acceptance will be the evidence of contract fulfillment and the remaining subsidy will be paid.