A TOTAL OF BGN 98 MLN ALLOCATED FOR TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION OF SMALL BUSINESSES UNDER OP COMPETITIVENESS

The Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism and the Executive Agency for Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME) opened a new scheme under Operational Programme Competitiveness aimed at technological modernisation of small and medium enterprises. The total amount of the grant under the procedure is BGN 97.791 mln. 

The Ministry is the Managing Authority of OP Competitiveness and the agency - an intermediate unit in its priority axes 1 and 2. "Under this procedure, companies will have access to professional advice on the introduction of new technologies, processes, products and services," explained experts from the ministry. Proposals can be submitted to the regional units of ASME in the towns of Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Varna, Vratsa, Pleven, Plovdiv, Ruse, Sofia, Stara Zagora and Veliko Tarnovo, until 20.12.2011. 

OP Competitiveness, which is focused on business projects, is at the bottom of the ranking in terms of agreed share of funds and the payments to companies continue to be late. Contracts have been signed for just about 36% of the program budget (of €1.1 bn). The average percentage of the agreed funds under all European programmes is 54%.