Final guide updated – 29 February 2024

Objective

Capitalizing on the advantages of digitization for the benefit of citizens, companies, research organizations and public authorities

The type of call

Competitive, with a submission deadline

Project submission period

Date and time for the start of project submission: 22.05.2024, 10:00 a.m

Date and time of closing the call for projects: 30.07.2024, 10:00 a.m.

The allocated budget

The allocation of this call for projects (ERDF + BS) is of 16,764,705.90 euros, of which 14,250,000.00 euros FEDR and 2,514,705.90 euros co-financing from BS.

applicantsAND eligible

• SMEs registered in the North-West Development Region (has its registered office in the Northwest Development Region at least at the time of the first payment)
• The applicant has carried out activity for a corresponding period of at least one fiscal year and has registered operating profit (>0 lei) in the fiscal year prior to submitting the financing request and did not have the activity suspended at any time during the year of submission of the funding application
  • an enterprise submitting the application for funding during 2024 must have been established no later than 3 January 2023 and have recorded an operating profit in the fiscal year prior to submitting the application for funding
• The activity/process digitization solution is related to an authorized CAEN code of the applicant
• The applicant undertakes to support from his own sources co to eligible expenses, amounting to minimum 10% provided for in the terms of this call for projects

The place of implementation of the project must be located in localities in the Central Region, Romania, as follows:

• in the urban environment of the North-West Development Region (including villages belonging to cities and municipalities)
• in the rural environment of the Northwest Development Region

The applicant will hold (at the latest during the contracting stage) one of the following rights over the property/properties that are the object of the investment within the project:

a) the right to private property;

b) the right of use arising from a loan agreement/lease/lease.

The applicant, if he will receive financing, must for a period of 3 years from the date of completion of the investment, in accordance with the provisions of art. 65 of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060:

a. to maintain the investment made, ensuring the costs of operation, maintenance and the necessary associated services, in order to ensure its financial sustainability;

b. not to make a change to the quality of his right over the real estate/real estate or an element of infrastructure;

c. not make a substantial change that affects the nature, objectives or conditions of implementation and that would lead to undermining its original objectives.

Minimum and maximum eligible/non-reimbursable value of a project: 10,000 Euros – 100,000 Euros

The exchange rate at which the entry into the respective minimum and maximum values will be calculated is the InforEuro exchange rate from August 2023, the month of publication of the applicant's guide, respectively, 1 euro = 4.9308 lei.

The financing percentage is 90% from the total eligible value of the project, and which represents the non-refundable eligible value.

Actions supported within the call

This call for projects targets initiatives that lead to the consolidation of digital culture within businesses, transform and improve the user/consumer experience, favor analysis and decision-making based on data or lead to the efficiency of ongoing activities.

Digitization of SMEs it will target both the organization and planning of production, the administrative activities of companies, as well as the digitization of technological processes. In this sense, investments in the form of tangible (fixed assets) and intangible assets with the aforementioned purpose are financed, as well as digital services, to increase the use of information and communication technology and that comply with the eligibility conditions.

The types of actions supported in this call for projects are the following:

• Investments for the adoption of technologies and digital tools that lead to the innovation of the business model, RFID (Radio-Frequency Identification) type systems for the management of production activity or service delivery, specialized localization systems for the activity of companies (information tracking systems), the purchase of services, equipment and technologies required for digital transformation, including for: running internal processes, interacting with customers/consumers, distributing products, collecting and analyzing data.
• Investments to increase the use of digital technologies by businesses in order to increase visibility, including the creation of websites adapted to e-commerce activity and with a high degree of interactivity.
• The development and implementation of solutions to ensure cyber security, in particular the protection of personal data and the safety of online transactions.
• Investments to increase the use of digital technologies in order to increase productivity (digital technologies for production lines, automation, robotics, digital technologies in management, organization of activities, etc.), including financing the introduction of high-speed broadband connections inside the company, applications with a role in office management, etc.

Eligible activities

Mandatory eligible activities

The applicant will have to include in the funding application at least the activities leading to the fulfillment of the digital intensity criteria.

Digital intensity measures the firm-wide availability of 12 different digital technologies as follows:

1. Internet for at least 50% of the employed staff
2. Use of ICT specialists;
3. Fast broadband (30 Mbps or higher);
4. Mobile internet devices for at least 20% of the employed staff;
5. Website or online presentation page;
6. An online site with sophisticated functions;
7. Presence in social media;
8. Purchase of Internet advertising services;
9. Purchase of medium-high cloud computing services;
10. Sending electronic invoices for automated processing;
11. E-commerce web sales represent at least 1% of total turnover;

It is considered that the project achieves a high level of intensity only in the situation in which it is used at least 7 of these 12 digital technologies.

Within this call for projects, the following types of investments are eligible, of the nature of tangible (fixed assets) and intangible assets, as well as digitization services, as follows:

1. Purchase of ICT (information and communication technology) hardware equipment and other related devices and equipment, including installation, configuration, commissioning expenses, justified from the point of view of project implementation;

2. The purchase of automation and robotics equipment for technological flows, integrated with digital solutions;

3. Realization of the LAN network necessary for project implementation;

4. Acquisition of the software applications/licenses necessary for the implementation of the project (including software developed and/or adapted according to the beneficiary's requirements), configuration and implementation of databases, migration and integration of various existing data structures, including RPA and Robotic software automation solutions Process Automation;

5. Acquisition of artificial intelligence systems, machine learning, augmented reality, virtual reality;

6. Purchase of the company's Website;

7. Training of the staff who will use the ICT equipment;

8. Acquisition of services for converting archives from analogue/folders/paper to indexable digital;

9. Purchase of specific IT applications for people with disabilities;

10. Acquisition of information technology solutions for electronic commerce;

11. Procurement of applicable cyber security enhancement services for software/hosting/networks;

12. Acquisition of consulting/analysis services to identify technical solutions regarding digitization that SMEs need.

IMPORTANT!

Maximum points are awarded for meeting the following:

The number of digital technologies selected should be >10 <=12

Applicant's contribution to eligible expenses >10%.