MADR has displayed on its official website, in the "Decision Transparency" section, a draft normative act for the implementation of a multi-year national program, INVESTALIM, for the period 2023-2026, aimed at providing financial support to stimulate domestic production of food goods.

The INVESTALIM Program will be implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development through the Agency for Rural Investment Financing (AFIR). The maximum budget for the INVESTALIM Program for the period 2023-2026 is 2.9 billion lei, equivalent to approximately 600,000,000 euros.

This program will provide regional state aid to support investments in the acquisition of assets for establishing new units, expanding the capacity of existing units, and diversifying production by manufacturing new products.

The investments made under the INVESTALIM Program must cumulatively meet the following main criteria:

a) Have a total value, excluding VAT, of at least 2,500,000 lei, or approximately 500,000 euros.

b) Demonstrate economic efficiency and viability throughout the entire implementation period of the investment and an additional 5 years from its completion date.

c) Meet established quantitative and qualitative indicators.

d) Generate contributions to regional development by paying taxes and fees to the consolidated state budget and local budgets during the investment implementation period and an additional 5 years from its completion date.

e) Generate a quantifiable multiplier effect on the economy by attracting other related investments and developing local suppliers of products and services.

f) The enterprise is obliged to keep the initial investment in operational condition for a period of at least 5 years from its completion date.

The beneficiaries are economic operators established in accordance with Law no. 31/1990. They must provide a financial contribution of at least 25% of the total project costs from their own resources, in a form that does not qualify for any other public aid.

To ensure their own contribution, beneficiaries can obtain financing from credit institutions. These financings are granted in accordance with the internal rules of the credit institutions, based on a credit agreement, and are guaranteed by the Rural Credit Guarantee Fund, IFN SA.

The amount of state aid granted under the INVESTALIM Program is determined in compliance with the conditions provided by Government Decision 311/2022 regarding the maximum intensity of regional state aid for initial investments during the period 2022-2027.

Within the Program, AFIR issues financing agreements until December 31, 2026, and payments are made until December 31, 2031.

The draft Emergency Ordinance can be consulted at the following link: Link to the draft document

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Eligibility conditions for beneficiaries of the INVESTALIM Program:

a) Carry out an investment in Romania in one of the sectors of the food industry.

b) Not fall into the category of "enterprises in difficulty" defined according to Article 2(18) of the Regulation.

c) Not be subject to forced execution, insolvency, bankruptcy, judicial reorganization, dissolution, operational closure, liquidation, or temporary suspension of activities.

d) Not be subject to recovery decisions of state aid, or if such decisions have been issued, they have been executed in accordance with applicable legal provisions.

e) Not have relocated to the unit where the initial investment, for which aid is requested, is to take place in the two years prior to the registration of the funding agreement, and at the time of registration, provide a commitment not to do so for a period of up to two years after the completion of the initial investment for which aid is requested.

f) Not have outstanding tax obligations and other budgetary claims administered by the central tax authority, as defined in Article 1 point 31 of Law no. 207/2015 regarding the Fiscal Procedure Code, with subsequent amendments and completions.

g) Have a positive turnover profitability in one of the last three completed financial years.

h) Have positive own capital in the last completed financial year.