2020 Call for INVESTMENT AID IN THE WINE SECTOR

At IMPULSO, we are pleased to remind you that in some Autonomous Communities, the application period for the 2020 call for INVESTMENT AID IN THE WINE SECTOR is already open. This aid line is part of the 2019-2023 Support Programme for the Spanish Wine Sector offered by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, through the Autonomous Communities.

In the remaining Communities, this period is expected to open imminently, with the deadline for opening being December 1, 2020.

The purpose of this aid line, with a total budget allocation for the next five years of 280 million euros, distributed in annual allocations of 56 million euros, is to improve the overall performance of companies in the wine sector and their adaptation to market demands, as well as to increase their competitiveness, through financial support for tangible or intangible investments in processing facilities and wine infrastructure, as well as in marketing structures and instruments, including for the purpose of improving energy savings, overall energy efficiency, and sustainable processes.

Below, we summarize the main characteristics of these grants:

BENEFICIARIES

• Wine companies that, having been incorporated before the date of application submission, produce, market, or begin to market wine, must, or wine vinegar (products covered by Annex VII, part II of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council). In the case of companies whose sole activity is marketing, at least 80% of the turnover from the last closed financial year must come from said products.

In the case of companies whose activity is solely marketing, at least 80% of their turnover for the last closed financial year must come from the marketing of the aforementioned products.

• Associations of two or more producers, with legal personality, of the products mentioned in the previous section.
• Recognized wine producer organizations.
• Interprofessional organizations.

No aid will be granted to companies in difficulty/crisis.

PROJECT TYPES

Aid will be granted for tangible or intangible investments in: processing facilities, wine infrastructure, marketing structures and instruments for the production or marketing of wine products, with the following objectives:

• Improve the overall performance of the company.
• Improve adaptation to market demands.
• Increase competitiveness.
• Improve energy savings, overall energy efficiency, and sustainable processes.

ELIGIBLE COSTS

• Construction, acquisition, or improvement of real estate. With the following maximum limits:

• Land development:
  • Perimeter fencing of estates: €35/linear meter.
  • Grading and development: €30/m²
• Buildings: €450/m², excluding installations.
• Tasting, exhibition, or sales rooms: 15% of winery surface area.
• Technical and economic feasibility studies and environmental impact assessment: €1,700/each.
• Online store: €3,000.

• Purchase of new machinery and equipment up to the market value of the product.
• General costs linked to the expenses covered in the previous points, such as fees for architects, engineers, and consultants, as well as feasibility studies, with a limit of 8% of the approved budget for the investment operation.
• Acquisition or development of computer software and acquisition of patents, licenses, copyrights, and the registration of collective trademarks.

Below is a non-exhaustive list of general objectives for eligible operations:

1. Investments directly intended for the production of wine products (from grape processing to bottling or packaging, and labeling of the wine product in the winery):

1. Investments in cold storage chambers.
2. Investments in other winery facilities.
3. Investments in civil engineering:
4. Construction of new buildings.
5. Improvement of buildings.

iii. Acquisition of buildings.

1. Investments in the purchase of machinery and/or equipment:
2. Machinery and/or equipment for grape processing (weighing, pressing, etc.).
3. Fermentation and/or winemaking machinery and/or equipment.

iii. Machinery and/or equipment for the treatment of wines and musts (filtration, sedimentation, clarification, etc.).

1. Temperature control machinery and/or equipment.
2. Equipment for the movement and treatment of wine in the winery.
3. Equipment for storage, blending, post-care, and aging of wine.

vii. General equipment for bottling, packaging, labeling, and wrapping.

viii. Specific equipment for the production, storage, bottling, and conditioning of sparkling wines.

1. Winery management software.
2. Equipment for wastewater and other waste management.
3. General costs related to the investments described in this section 1.
4. Investments directly related to quality control:
5. Investments in laboratory construction and equipment.
6. Investments in machinery and equipment, including software for quality control of raw materials, products, and production and storage conditions.
7. Investments in equipment intended to introduce quality standards or voluntary traceability systems, including for organic wines.
8. General costs related to the investments described in this section 2.
9. Investments directly related to the marketing of wine products:
10. Investments in presentation and sales establishments:
11. Civil engineering, including exterior development (construction of new buildings, improvement of buildings, or acquisition of buildings). Regarding exterior development, it only includes grading and development when a new built surface is also planned between the plot boundary and the establishment.
12. Machinery and equipment, including software.
13. Investments in warehouses, logistics centers, and commercial offices:
14. Civil engineering, including exterior development (construction of new buildings, improvement of buildings, or acquisition of buildings). Regarding exterior development, it only includes grading and development when a new built surface is also planned between the plot boundary and the establishment.
15. Machinery and equipment, including software.
16. Investments in equipment for the logistics and marketing of wine products.
17. Hardware, software, and/or web platforms for e-commerce exclusively for wine products.
18. Registration of collective trademarks.
19. General costs related to the investments described in this section 3.
20. Investments directly related to administrative and/or general uses:
21. Investments in civil engineering, including exterior development:
22. Construction of new buildings.
23. Improvement of buildings.

iii. Acquisition of buildings.

1. Investments in energy supplies and service connections (generators, transformers, power lines, water supply, etc.)
2. Investments in other facilities and equipment, including software:
3. For administrative use.
4. For business management.
5. General costs related to the investments described in this section 4.

PROJECT REQUIREMENTS

• The project may be annual or biennial (at least 50% in the 1st financial year). Investments must be grouped by year, and it is necessary to indicate the maximum period in which they can be justified (investments executed and paid). This schedule must be met upon justification.
• Execution of investments: from the certificate of non-commencement until 2022-04-30. At least 50% of the proposed budget must be executed before 2021-04-30.
• Each operation must contribute to at least one of the strategic objectives set out in Annex XVII of Royal Decree 1363/2018, of November 2, and one or more of the general objectives set out in Annex XVIII of the aforementioned royal decree must be identified or, if not included in said list, must be specified in the application.

• Promote associations.
• Integral sustainability.
• Environmental certification.
• Organic production.
• Quality
• Marketing.
• Innovation.
• Digital technology.

TYPE AND INTENSITY OF AID

Grant of up to 40% in general, 50% in less developed regions, and 75% in the Canary Islands and other outermost regions.

Additionally, the following considerations will apply:

• For micro-enterprises and SMEs, the above percentages will apply.
• For companies with fewer than 750 employees, or whose turnover is less than 200 million euros, the aid intensity will be 50% of the percentages indicated above.
• For companies with 750 or more employees and whose turnover is equal to or greater than 200 million euros, the aid intensity will be 25% of the percentages indicated above.

Resolution within six months: Each autonomous community will prepare a provisional list and send it to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) before May 1 of each year. Based on these lists, the General Directorate of the Food Industry of MAPA will prepare a single list for all autonomous communities with the final proposal. Once the final list is approved by the Sectoral Conference, the autonomous communities will resolve the applications and notify the beneficiaries.

Payment of aid: once the investments have been verified. An eligible investment equivalent to at least 60% of the initially approved amount must be verified.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE

The deadline for submitting applications will end on 2021-01-31.

2020-09-22