Business Development and Innovation Croatia Programme, Call no. 2 2021

The funding is available to Croatian companies via the "Business Development and Innovation Croatia" programme aiming to increase the value creation and sustainable growth in the Croatian private sector.

The programme is operated by Innovation Norway, in partnership with the Croatian Chamber of Economy, Zagreb. As part of the Norway Grants 2014-2021 financial mechanism, the programme aims to contribute to the reduction of economic and social disparities in the European Economic Area (EEA) and to support the bilateral relations between Norway and the Beneficiary States.

This Programme represents a unique partnership opportunity to bring expertise and technology from project partners in the Donor State (Norway). Companies, clusters, NGOs, institutions etc. from Norway could be project partners, for individual Croatian companies, which will need to be the main beneficiaries of the project results. Partners however, should be actively involved in, and effectively contributing to, the implementation of the project through actions tailormade for the project.

Programme Specifics

Croatian enterprises can apply for a grant to finance part of a project to bring more innovation in products, services and processes. Note that this is a business development programme that will finance business growth and scale-up of activities and not a research programme, nor an energy programme.

This Programme does not have a fixed grant rate. The financial contribution will be determined on a case-by case basis, taking all relevant factors into account.

As a general rule, a small or medium-size enterprise in Croatia could get approximately 50% grant out of the total approved project budget for an investment project. The grant amount could be in the range of EUR 50k to EUR 1,5m, depending on company size and project type. Large companies can also apply but they will get a lower grant rate.

The Call for Proposals was published on 18 November 2021 with a deadline on 27 January 2022 for submission of applications . The two focus areas of the Programme and the Call are: Green Industry Innovation and Blue Growth.

Focus Areas

Green Industry Innovation

Greening of the manufacturing and production industries. Support can be given to investments in more green technologies to increase the production capacity, diversify products or services, or contribute to a fundamental change in the production process to make it more environmentally friendly.

Blue Growth

Support for sustainable growth in the marine and maritime sector in general. Sea, ocean, rivers, lakes and islands represent resources for innovation and economic growth. Example of projects could be innovative marine/maritime equipment, green shipping technology, ship repair, maritime and marine safety.

If you would like to discuss a new project idea with us or accelerate your access to funding:

How can Winnovart help you

– if you would like to discuss a new project idea with us, don’t hesitate to fill in our funding readiness questionnaire and we will come back with our independent feedback.

– Winnovart’s independent service options are designed to help you accelerate your access to this funding and navigate with confidence through the entire process of applying for, obtaining the grant and implementing your project successfully.

For more information on the Business Development and Innovation Croatia programme, please read here. Additionally, for ongoing updates about the EEA & Norway grants, please get in touch with us.

At Winnovart, it is part of our mission to bridge the gap between stakeholders of the grants-based funding market-space in Europe. We are a leading independent consultancy specialised in EEA & Norway grants for private sector companies. In the past years we have raised over EUR 40m mil euro in funding under this mechanism for clients from various industries across the CEE space. Many projects have involved bilateral partners from the Donor States (Norway and Iceland). We have a very good presence in the Donor States, with the capacity to support in the development of bilateral partnerships, one of the key ambitions of the EEA & Norway grants.

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