Automotive Sector Competitiveness Plan

Announced as part of economic stimulus measures in November 2008, the Automotive Sector Competitiveness Plan will provide funding in the form of grants and loans to auto industry projects that : Increase the value added of products and services, oriented towards clean transport; Increase the efficiency and sustainability of production processes; Orient production towards more sustainable products (such as hybrids, electric vehicles, and vehicles with lower emission levels); Improve technical skills; Implement strategies to advance production and organisational processes. The Plan seeks to improve energy efficiency, and spur the development of products that will increase competitiveness in the future, such as hybrid, electric and low-emission vehicles. Projects eligible for funding include: Investments for products that are more environmentally friendly, including those that make efficient use of energy, as well as for more sustainable production processes; Studies that examine improving the sustainability of products or production processes; Reengineering of production processes and introduction of advanced production, including to increase the value and sustainability of products; Tests to determine the technical feasibility of such actions. Projects must be implemented between 1 January and 31 December 2009, and have a minimum cost of EUR 500 000 for SMEs and EUR 2 million for large companies. This Plan, launched in 2009, with a budget of €800 million (Order ITC/21/2009, of 16 january), has had continuity through the aids approved in the frame of the Competitiveness Plan of Strategic Industrial Sectors (2011, €250 million) and the Integral Plan on Industrial Policy (2020 (€3990 million)

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