The Ministry of the Economy, Entrepreneurship and Crafts in cooperation with the Croatian Agency for Small Business, Innovation and Investment (HAMAG-BICRO) yesterday awarded the first 23 Decisions on financing project proposals to entrepreneurs who were positively rated and ranked highest within the Call “Increasing new product development and services arising from research and development (IRI) activities – phase II “.
The value of the 23 projects in question is HRK 276 million, of which HRK 161 million is the amount of grants, while the most successful, positively evaluated projects within the Call itself will be awarded a total of HRK 989.5 million.
In addition to Minister Horvat, this presentation was attended by State Secretaries of the Ministry of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Crafts Mario Antonić and Nataša Mikuš Žigman, President of the Management Board of HAMAG-BICRO Vjeran Vrbanec and member of the Management Board of HAMAG-BICRO Ante Janko Bobetko, while from the Ministry of Regional Development and European Union funds participated Luka Novosel.
‘Today we have prepared the first 23 Decisions on the financing of projects awarded through the OP Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014-2020. from the European Regional Development Fund. The total value for the first 23 projects is HRK 276 million, while the value of the grant is HRK 161 million. A total of 340 project applications were received within the IRI 2 call, requesting more than 3.2 billion HRK in grants, a project value of 5.6 billion HRK, which is twice as much as in the IRI 1 call, “said the President of the Management Board of HAMAG. -BICRO Vjeran Vrbanec.
One of the first companies to receive the Decision on financing the project is a Vukovar based company, a tenant of the Vukovar Economic Zone, Certifikat d.o.o. for a project entitled ‘Increasing the development of new products of Certifikat d.o.o.’ total value HRK 11,595,659.21.
Certificate d.o.o. has been operating on the market since 2005, and today is one of the leading and most successful companies in the specific activity of in vitro diagnostics.
This project provided funds for the development of two new innovative products in microbiological in vitro production, which will make it more competitive primarily in the domestic market and then in the foreign market.
The aim of the project is to research and develop two new products: a microbiological plate for sterility testing, and a plate for rapid control in laboratory diagnostics that would contribute to expanding the range of products, better market position, and creating a climate for further research and development.
Finally, Minister Horvat pointed out that the projects encouraged through this Call will bring the Croatian economy to a higher level of competitiveness through the creation of new innovative products and services in specifically targeted S3 areas, and thus affect the profitability and competitiveness of entrepreneurs. “All these projects show that our entrepreneurs are very ready for the upcoming challenges posed by the future EU budget, through the Multiannual Financial Framework, which will focus on digital transformation, new environmentally friendly technologies and a sustainable economy,” Horvat said. announced that the goal of this Government is to open the IRI 3 tender at the beginning of the next term.