Projects of more than 500 million euro for investments in the production of construction materials are being prepared under the ConstructPLUS scheme, which opened yesterday, April 8, for 30 days. The allocation of only 150 million euros is insufficient for the huge demand, and the budget should be supplemented, according to REI Grup officials.
Thus, investment projects totalling more than 500 million euro are being prepared for submission by the REI Grup team under the ConstructPLUS scheme, implemented by the Ministry of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Tourism (MEET) and dedicated to companies operating in the construction materials industry, which want to diversify their activity either through new production lines or by expanding production capacities.
Although the interest for investments in the building materials manufacturing sector is huge, the budget of the scheme is limited in this session starting today, April 8, with an allocation of only €149 million.
“We are in discussions and negotiations for large investment projects with a total value of more than €500 million with ConstructPLUS being one of the most awaited state aid schemes for the companies we work with. We are talking about companies active in the construction materials manufacturing sector, eligible under this funding scheme. The interest is huge, but it is clear that not all projects will benefit from funding due to the very small allocation,” Roxana Mircea, managing partner REI Grup, one of the most important companies specialized in consultancy services for attracting non-reimbursable funds in Romania stated.
According to Roxana Mircea, the increased demand in the field of building materials production shows the appetite of investors for the local market, with both Romanian entrepreneurial businesses and international groups on the list of companies interested in developing projects.
“These are investments that Romania has not seen in recent years, in the order of hundreds of millions of euros. The ConstructPLUS scheme, implemented by MEET, is welcome and long overdue, but it needs to be matched with the real need in the market. We risk missing out on billions in investment if we fail to find the necessary funding sources to meet the vast majority of these investment plans. Romania is a market with great potential, and the construction sector has placed us on the European map of countries that have attracted important names in recent years, as well as successful entrepreneurial projects that have reached beyond the country’s borders,” Roxana Mircea added.
The ConstructPLUS funding scheme opened on April 8 and run until May 8, its main objective being to stimulate investment with non-reimbursable support to increase the production of construction materials, especially in sectors where the trade balance is negative, where we practically import more than we produce – to cover demand – and in areas considered economically disadvantaged.
Eligible applicants under this funding scheme are start-ups, micro-enterprises, SMEs, but also large enterprises, and the maximum non-reimbursable support that companies can attract for a single investment project amounts to €57.75 million for large enterprises, i.e. a maximum intensity of 70%.
In order to reach the maximum grant and obtain the desired funding, the investment should be carried out in a county that reaches the maximum intensity (of 70%) – these include the counties of Galati, Prahova, Dolj or Gorj.
The classification of the projects that could obtain the desired funding under this state aid scheme will be based on a score obtained by the applicants, reflecting both their financial performance, where the value of the investment project should exceed the threshold of 40 million euro, the subscribed share capital should be one with a value of more than 500,000 RON, and the CAEN code of the company that will apply under this program should have a negative balance in the trade balance (reported to the year 2022).
“ConstructPLUS is the most awaited financing program for companies specialized in the production of building materials. Although the allocation is relatively small compared to the existing demand in the market, we would like MEET to consider increasing the allocation for future editions, similar to what is being negotiated for INVESTALIM. In the case of companies that fail to obtain funding under the current scheme, we have solutions to re-submit projects to future schemes that will open during the year – the session for large enterprises – Fair Transition, the next session on GD 807/2014 or a future session of the scheme for the manufacturing industry – regulated by GD 959/2022,” Roxana Mircea added.