Rules of application for international consortia

Considering the different starting points for Austria and South-Eastern and Eastern-Europe as regions for prospective cooperation, the situation offers a clear win-win potential which needs to be strategically utilised. Austrian enterprises can offer an impetus and participate in the increased growth thus induced. In this way, a joint axis between players in Austria and in the South-Eastern and Eastern European states can enjoy competitive advantages in a global context which benefit all parties involved. In view of the geographical and cultural proximity, major advantages should accrue from this win-win potential in particular to technology-focused SMEs in Austria (as well as in the partner countries). To obtain state aid, the main beneficiaries of a given project must be the SMEs involved in it.

Amount of aid:

Funding rate in terms of overall projects: max. 75% of eligible overall costs.

• For intermediaries and research institutes involved: max. 75%.
• For enterprises involved: same as the generally valid COIN regulations (for large, medium and small enterprises respectively).
• Within the scope of these institutional differences, project partners from Austria and the partner countries receive equal treatment.

Partner structure:

• Involvement of at least four enterprises (of which at least three SMEs), of which at least two from Austria and at least two from the partner region.
• Partners within a minimum-scale consortium must not be interlinked.
• Where projects involve the development of a network a higher number of partners is desirable.
• This call explicitly permits cooperation between "clustered systems”. (Clustered systems: Several players [enterprises, as well as research institutes and intermediaries] from a closely defined regional environment cooperate with several players from another closely defined regional environment, thus contributing to the "strategic” coupling of two regional innovation systems in a given technology field.)

Maximum portion of Austrian aid flowing abroad:

• Generally 20–40%, depending on the number of partners and partner countries involved (in South-Eastern and Eastern Europe);
• not less than 15%; and
• not more than 50%.
   

Partner countries for consortium partners:

• Albania
• Armenia
• Azerbaijan
• Belarus
• Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Georgia
• Kazakhstan
• Kosovo (under UNSCR 1244/99)
• FYR of Macedonia
• Moldavia
• Montenegro
• Romania
• Russia
• Serbia
• Turkey
• Ukraine

Source and further information: http://www.ffg.at/content.php?cid=984, as accessed on July 6, 2010.