Malta Enterprise has launched a scheme entitled ‘Investment Aid for COVID Products’. The aid supports undertakings to carry out investment projects to increase or initiate production of COVID-19 relevant products or to diversify existing production to be able to produce such products.

The aid is mainly in the form of cash grant not exceeding 80% of the eligible costs related to COVID-19 related products that are completed within 6 months from the start of works. Eligible costs must be incurred after 1 February 2020 and must fall within the following categories:

• Tangible and intangible assets procured to develop, manufacture and provide COVID-19 relevant products.
• Wage costs of personnel engaged to design and develop tools, processes and solutions for the production and manufacturing of COVID-19 relevant products. 
• Wage costs of personnel engaged to develop data collection and processing tools (including Artificial Intelligent solutions) supporting the medical profession and the general public in issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic. 
• Costs incurred for trial runs of the new (or diversified) production facilities such as cost of materials required for trial runs of production facilities and cost of data sets acquired to test data processing and collection solutions.

The aid may be increased by an additional 15% if the project is completed within 2 months for the aid being approved or the project is carried out in collaboration with another undertaking established in another Member State which is also receiving support from that Member State.

Applications are open. The scheme is available till 31 December 2020.

Further details can be found in the scheme’s Guidelines.

This measure has been approved by the European Commission on 12 May under the Temporary Framework for State aid measures to support the economy in the current COVID-19 outbreak, as amended to date.

Should you have any queries or wish to discuss further, please send an email to covid@kpmg.com.mt.

The information contained herein is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavour to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act on such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the particular situation.