Six EU Support Programs for Croatian Carriers

One of the goals of the European Union is to redirect more freight from roads to more environmentally friendly modes of transport – sea, rivers, and rail. We reveal what this means for domestic entrepreneurs.

written by Dražen Žgaljić
[email protected]

In order not to become victims of the great industrial expansion of this and the last century, it is essential to think about ecology, the world, and the conditions in which we want to live. Transport is a valuable generator of development in a region and necessary for economic progress, but it can also be more environmentally friendly. One of the main goals of the European Union’s White Paper is to redirect as much freight as possible from roads to more environmentally friendly modes of transport (sea, rivers, and rail), but financial resources are needed for this. With this goal in mind, several European Union funds have been established to promote the development and functioning of transport, specifically aimed at entrepreneurs. To help you navigate the search for the right support, we present six programs available to Croatian entrepreneurs.

1. FP7
The FP7 community program is intended for financing innovative and scientific projects in the field of transport. All profit or non-profit institutions/companies can participate, but the project proposal must be prepared and implemented by a consortium of companies, at least one of which is from an EU member state. The program covers from 60 to 100 percent of all costs arising from the project, depending on the program branch, and these are non-repayable funds.

2. IEE
The IEE (Intelligent Energy Europe) community program supports projects in the field of optimizing the use and promoting the use of renewable energy sources, covering up to a maximum of 75 percent of all project costs. The project must be prepared and implemented by consortia of companies from at least three EU member states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Croatia, with a maximum duration of three years. Funding can be provided for the introduction of new technologies, knowledge and experience exchange, education, raising knowledge levels, etc. Since the transport system is a major consumer of electricity (terminals, railways), this program is very useful and allows for significant investments co-financed by the EU. The amounts of non-repayable funds per project can range from 500,000 to 2,500,000 euros.

3. CIP-Eco-innovation
The CIP-Eco-innovation community program supports innovative products, services, and technologies to better utilize natural resources and reduce environmental impact (ecological footprint). The goal is to bridge the gap between research in innovation and market placement. An example in transport is innovative transport units. Project proposals can be submitted independently by companies from Croatia. The maximum duration of the project is 36 months, and the program supports 50 percent of all costs incurred in the project.

4. Marco Polo II.
The main goal of the Marco Polo II community program is to reduce the burden of road traffic and its negative impact on the environment by redirecting traffic from roads to coastal shipping, rail, and inland navigation. The program co-finances the transport of goods and passengers in Europe with non-repayable funds and is intended exclusively for carriers and their partners. All involved in the transport service receive funding, whether it is a consortium or a single company, with the possibility for a company from Croatia to apply independently. The program is divided into five branches: activities for changing transport modalities, catalytic activities, maritime highways, activities to avoid road congestion, and joint educational activities, which co-finance from 35 to 50 percent of all costs for a maximum duration of five years, depending on the branch. When preparing the project proposal, it is important to pay attention to the fact that the future project must not directly affect the successful competitive transport service. Otherwise, the proposal will be rejected. The goal is to influence the competitiveness of alternative modes of transport (sea, rail, and rivers), not the competitiveness of one route compared to a similar one. The amounts of non-repayable funds range from 250,000 to 2,500,000 euros.

5. TEN-T
The TEN-T community program is intended for infrastructure investments in intermodal transport. The Republic of Croatia is currently not a signatory to the Memorandum of Understanding with the program and cannot directly use the funds. However, according to the ‘10% Rule’, it is possible to be a regional partner in the project and thus enable investment in Croatia of up to 10 percent of the total project costs. The program is divided into four branches: infrastructure investments, initial investments for starting the transport service (infrastructure), studies, and investments in a wide range of activities (deepening operational coasts, informatization, RIS, VTS systems, etc.) which financially support the project from 20 to 50 percent of the total project costs, depending on the branch.

6. IPA Adriatic CBC
The pre-accession fund IPA Adriatic CBC is intended for financing many activities in culture, tourism, ecology…, but also in transport. The goal of the program is to connect institutions in all countries in the Adriatic and to develop and implement projects that have a cross-border impact. All non-profit institutions from all countries in the Adriatic can participate, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises if their share of co-financing (15 percent) is taken over by an institution funded by the state budget. The project proposal must be prepared and implemented by a consortium of companies, at least one of which is from an EU member state (Italy, Slovenia, and Greece). The fund covers 85 percent of all costs arising from the project, and these are non-repayable funds, with a minimum amount of non-repayable funds of 500,000 euros and a maximum of 5,000,000 euros.

Assistance with Applications
Participation in any of these programs involves submitting project proposals in accordance with the prescribed procedure for project documentation preparation, and calls for project proposal submissions are usually published once a year. The intermodal transport cluster (www.shortsea.hr) provides assistance to all entrepreneurs, either through information or active participation in the preparation of project documentation, and they can be reached at the phone number 051/344-252 or via email at [email protected].