Enterprise Ireland launches Sustaining Enterprise Fund for Small Enterprise
As part of the Sustaining Enterprise Fund, Enterprise Ireland will administer a specific Sustaining Enterprise Fund for Small Enterprise. This fund will provide a €25k to €50k short term working capital injection to eligible smaller companies to support business continuity and strengthen their ability to return to growth and be trading strongly in 3 years time.
The purpose of the fund is to sustain eligible manufacturing and internationally traded services companies to provide support to companies: who have been impacted by a 15% or more reduction in actual or projected turnover or profit; and require access to liquidity to sustain business continuity.
To deliver on this, the objectives of the fund are to:
- Provide financial support (against detailed costs and cashflows) to eligible companies for a 3-month period to support business continuity
- Sustain business so that companies can return to viability and contribute to the recovery of the Irish economy.
-
Businesses qualifying under this EU-supported scheme will be offered to fund of up to €50,000.
Under this fund, eligible companies can apply for up to a maximum of €50,000 per undertaking in the form of repayable advances. Funding available to companies is based on the following threshold:
- Companies with more than 10 employees and an annual turnover in their most recent financial statements not exceeding €1.5 million can apply for up to €25,000 in funding
- Companies with an annual turnover in their most recent financial statements greater than €1.5 million but less than €5 million can apply for funding up to €50,000.
-
The Project Plan should Detail:
- Funding assistance sought
- The expenditure underpinning the financial assistance
- Summary cash flows for the next 3 months of trading (weekly for the first month)
- How the project plan strengthens business continuity in order to strengthen the position of the company to be trading in 3 years’ time.
-
Who cannot apply?
This scheme is not open to companies that:
- Were in financial difficulty on 31st of December 2019
- Entered financial difficulty after 31st of December 2019 for reasons not related to Covid-19
- Are active in the primary agricultural, fishery or aquaculture sectors
- Operate in the coal and steel sector
- Were covered by specific rules for Financial Services.
-
Applications
Eligible applicants are manufacturing and internationally traded service companies with:
- 10 or more full-time people on their payroll on the 29th of February 2020
- An annual turnover in their most recent financial statements not exceeding €5 million.
-
In addition, eligible applicants must have:
- Suffered, or be projected to suffer, a 15% or more reduction in actual or projected turnover or profit as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak (including a significant increase in costs as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak)
- Engaged with their financial institution on their financing needs to sustain the business through the short and medium term.
-
For further information, click here, contact your Development Advisor or contact the Covid-19 Business Response Unit at businessresponse@enterprise-ireland.com