The Vice-President of the Regional Government announced today in Ponta Delgada new measures to support businesspeople in the archipelago with the aim of revitalising and relaunching Azorean economy.
Sérgio Ávila spoke at the signing ceremony of the protocols with banks for the lines of credit to support companies. The government official restated the Regional Government's commitment with the introduction of amendments to funding programmes for companies.
"The Line of Credit 'Azores Invest II' was reinforced with 10 million Euros, thus setting at 50 million Euros the total amount granted under this business support tool. The applications approved under this measure already represent an investment of 38.9 million Euros," stated the Vice-President.
In addition, the Regional Government has decided to boost the Line of Credit "Invest Qren" in order to support companies with ongoing investments or with investments already approved under the incentive schemes SIDER and "Empreende Jovem" (Youth Entrepreneurship) that are having difficulties in securing bank funding for the investment that is not subsidised by the Government.
The Government will "contact next week all Azorean companies that have investment projects approved but with a low level of implementation in order to disseminate the conditions and application rules for this new support line."
Sérgio Ávila also revealed another initiative to stimulate the business sector, which is the "extension of repayment deadlines of funds granted under these support lines from five to eight years. The Regional Government will continue to ensure the full payment of spreads and Euribor rates in the case of micro and small companies."
With regard to the support lines for credit restructuring, "companies will benefit from a grace period of one year in the repayment of loans, thus preventing companies from making a financial effort to repay loans for a period of 12 months," stressed the Vice-President.
Sérgio Ávila emphasised that "these measures will reinforce the support to 2,701 Azorean companies that already benefit from the lines of credit and boost their liquidity, thus improving their financial situation."
According to the schedule presented in the Azorean Agenda for Employment Creation and Business Competitiveness, the Regional Government "will provide three new financial tools to support companies that are jointly developed with banks: a line of credit for exports, a line of credit for urban renewal and a line of credit to support private investment."
For Sérgio Ávila, these new tools "intend to introduce a new phase in the promotion of bank funding for Azorean companies. The new support measures are expected to be more selective and targeted at structural priorities and the strategic goals we have defined for the revitalisation of economic activity in the Region."
The line of credit to support exports "aims to create the financial conditions that encourage Azorean companies to reach new markets and expand their economic activity in order to reduce the impact of the decline in internal demand."
With the aim of recovering the construction sector in the archipelago, the line of credit for urban renewal is intended to provide an important contribution to this goal as the increase in the demand for the renewal of buildings has a growth potential.
Both measures will be implemented later this semester, revealed the Vice-President of the Regional Government.
Finally, the third measure aims to "minimise the existing constraints in the effective implementation of several private investments, whose applications have been approved by the Government under the Incentive Schemes for Investment."
Sérgio Ávila also reiterated that the Government will "continue to stimulate private and entrepreneurial initiatives as key drivers of economic activity, because only then the Azores will overcome the current difficulties."