CHAPTER A (ARTICLES 1-23)

INVESTMENT GRANTS

Article 4
CONTENT OF GRANT

1 Undertakings under article 2 which carry out productive investments as defined in article 1 and are subject to the provisions of the present law in accordance with article 7, are entitled to an investment grant up to a maximum amount of 3 billion drachmas, consisting in free capital assistance from the State, provided they have not received any grant from any other source for the same investment. The said grant shall be awarded only for productive investments or a part of such investments up to 5 billion drachmas with respect to all categories of undertakings except processing undertakings which are entitled to a grant for productive investments up to a total of 25 billion drachmas.
In the case of productive investments in excess of 25 billion drachmas, par. 3 of the present article shall be implemented exclusively.

2 The limit of 3 billion drachmas is calculated by adding up the value of all the productive investments related to the same production process which are submitted by the same investor, in order for them to be made subject to the provisions of the present law, within a period of 5 years from the completion of the first investment which has already been made subject to the provisions of the law.

3 In the case of investments in industry and tourism of at least 25 billion drachmas which are regarded as particularly important for the economy, having a major effect on the international competitiveness of the country, as well as on employment, with the creation of at least 300 permanent jobs, and on the broadening of the production base, divergences from the limit stipulated in par. 1 of the present law (i.e. 3 billion dr.) may be permitted by virtue of joint decisions of the Ministers of National Economy and of Industry, Energy and Technology as well as of the jointly competent Ministers issued on an ad hoc basis.
With respect to the investments of this paragraph, the same decisions shall also determine the necessary divergences from the provisions of the present law concerning own participation, the procedure for the award of grants, the size of grants, the composition of the Advisory Committee, the interest subsidy, conditions governing the conveyance of undertakings, as well as the possibility of public corporations participating in the investment. By virute of the same decisions, undertakings which realize investments under the present paragraph may be granted the facilities and privileges provided under paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 4 of article 3 and paragraph 6 of article 4 of Law 4171/61 (Government Gazette 93/A/61) Ňon the taking of general measures to assist the development of the country economy, which articles had ceased to have effect but which now come back into force.

This means that undertakings will have the exclusive right to use major harbour works which they constructed at their own expense, and the State will be able to concede to the undertaking the exclusive use of coastal or sea areas on an ad hoc basis. The expropriation of land belonging to legal persons of public or private law in favour of undertakings will also be permitted, as will the direct (without auction) sale to investors of land belonging to the State. The aforementioned joint ministerial decisions by which investments of this paragraph are made eligible for the provisions of the present law are subject to prior ratification by the Greek Parliament.

TABLE SHOWING TYPE OF UNDERTAKING AND MINIMUM SIZE OF PRODUCTIVE INVESTMENT REQUIRED IN ORDER TO BE MADE ELIGIBLE FOR THE PROVISIONS ON INVESTMENT GRANTS(1) AND INTEREST SUBSIDIES (OF ARTICLE 1, PAR. 3 AND ARTICLES 23a AND 23b)

                                                      Minimum size 
TYPE OF UNDERTAKING	         TYPE OF PRODUCTIVE INVESTMENT
                                                        million dr.

Undertakings exclusively providing services	Modernization	2
involving highly advanced technology	Establishment - expansion  5

Laboratories engaged in applied industrial,	Modernization	2
energy and mineral research	Establishment - expansion	5

Undertakings engaged in the development	Modernization	2
of technologies and software	Establishment - expansion 	5
All other undertakings except the above	Modernization	   10(1)
Listed houses or buildings or traditional workshops	Repair, restoration, 
conversion of listed traditional 
producing traditional craft industry products	houses or buildings into guest houses,
or handicrafts  hotels or workshops producing	
		traditional craft industry products or handicrafts	  15*

		*increased to 25 m. dr. by Min. Dec. 43500/94 (1)

Agricultural, forestry, livestock and fishery undertakings 	Establishment or expansion	30  using modern technology

Undertakings of agricultural or agro-industrial 	Investments in mechanical means of sowing, cultivating,
co-operatives	irrigation installations and systems, harvesting and packing
                       of agricultural products (establishment or expansion)      30

Undertakings engaged in the drying, freezing or dehydration	Establishment or expansion	30
of agricultural, livestock or fish products

Undertakings engaged in the standardization and packing 	Establishment or expansion	30
of the above products 

Undertakings producing biomass from annual or  	Establishment or expansion	30
perennial plants for the production of energy

Craft industry and handicraft undertakings	Establishment or expansion	45

All other undertakings except the above	Establishment or expansion	    60(1)

Existing industrial processing undertakings	Business plans of 2 - 5 years	1,000 (1 bn. dr.)

Existing software companies	Business plans of 2 - 5 years	500

Industrial processing undertakings or	Expenditures for studies, equipment, installations  
undertakings providing quality services	and the operation of the necessary infrastructures and procedures,   
	expenditures incurred for the certification of product quality	50

	Expenditures for conversion aimed at making units
	more flexible	50

	Expenditures for importing environment-friendly technology	50

	Expenditures for the production of innovative products, 
	the introduction of innovations in the production process,
	the award of patents for inventions and prototypes	50

	Expenditures for the expansion of laboratories providing quality services  50

	Expenditures for the establishment of laboratories providing quality services	250

	Expenditures for the establishment of industrial units for   
	the ecological dismantling/breaking up and use of products
	consumed in Greece	250


(1) See amendments, in accordance with Min. Dec. 43500/94 (see p. 39 and Appendix A/p. 69).



   Type and size		Maximum		Prerequisites
   of investment		investment grant            

 1. Investments 					No grant 
   by all categories	up to 3 billion dr.	from other 
   of undertakings				source 
   (except processing)
   up to 5 billion dr.

 2. Investments					No grant 
    by processing	up to 3 billion dr.	from other 
    undertakings					source
    up to 25 billion dr.

 3. Investments					Creation of 
     in industry and tourism	ad hoc		300 permanent jobs
     of particular importance	award                  
     for the Greek economy	of grant	Broadening of
     in excess of 25 billion dr.			the production base


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