Most of the investment, EUR 49.6 million, will come from the funds of EU investments for the 2021–2027 financial period, with another EUR 2.99 million from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism Programme and EUR 0.6 million from the Lithuanian state budget. The call for the recertification of goods of Lithuanian origin, financed by the Lithuanian state budget, is also scheduled to be extended in October with a total value of EUR 1.5 million.
Vincas Jurgutis, Vice-Minister for Economic Innovation: ‘We are responding to the situation and giving what the country’s businesses are looking forward to most. The planned financial instruments aim to help companies reduce energy, production costs and pollution, and increase productivity. Businesses will also be able to participate in research and experimental development projects’.
The majority of the new business finance investments this year will be aimed at encouraging businesses to move towards a climate-neutral economy, to innovate and develop new products through research and experimental development (R&D).
Romualda Stragienė, Director of Innovation Agency Lithuania: ‘Investment is a highly responsible phase for every business; it is not an easy decision to make and most of the hesitations are about whether it is the right thing to do, whether it is viable, whether it will succeed. This is especially relevant at this time, when there may be doubts about whether it is worth investing in the face of the upcoming crisis. It is not for nothing that state aid and EU funding is called investment: the EU and the state invest in those areas in which they believe. And it is no wonder when cost controls and demands for results come into play – all investors do so’.
According to the director, the priorities can help to make a decision, as they are indicative of the business outlook in the long term, and the key priorities for the future will remain business innovation, digitisation and the promotion of the green economy. ‘But if you don’t win the lottery without buying a ticket, you can’t expect money for investment without applying. We are interested in competition between project implementation plans – the best ideas must win’, says Stragienė.
The new financial period will focus more on businesses operating in the central and western Lithuania region. What is also new is that in some of the planned EU financial instruments, new regional clients will benefit from a higher funding intensity of up to 85%, compared to 50% for capital region applicants.
In total, Innovation Agency Lithuania’s portfolio of funding instruments currently amounts to around EUR 873 million, including the EU Investment Fund for the 2021–2027 financial period (EUR 511.2 million), the Just Transition Fund for the 2021–2027 period (EUR 273 million), the Mission-Oriented Research and Innovation Funding Programme (EUR 77.7 million), the Norwegian Financial Mechanism Programme (EUR 2.99 million) and the 2022 Lithuanian State Budget funding instruments (EUR 2.1 million). This investment funding will reach Lithuanian businesses throughout the years of the financial period.
