Bulgaria to fund MSME product innovation via 65 mln euro grant

Between March and September, companies will be able to apply for funding for projects that aim at developing product or business process innovations relating to goods production and services, the ministry said in a press release on Friday.

The financing provided under the EU-approved competitiveness programme will back the research into and the creation and testing of prototypes and pilot production lines as well as activities for industrial property protection in Bulgaria and abroad. The funds will be geared towards companies in sectors such as IT and ICT, microelectronics, biotechnology, creative industries as well as clean technologies, circular and low-carbon economy.

Eligible companies will receive grants of between 50,000 levs and 500,000 levs. Large enterprises, including those with up to 3,000 staff, will be able to apply only in partnership with SMEs. Funding will be allocated for between 25% to 60% of the value of a project, depending on the category of the enterprise and the place of implementation of the project.

Bulgarian MSMEs will have access to grants totalling over 1.2 billion levs in the first half of 2023, the innovation and growth ministry said earlier.

(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)