Subsidy 2: Investment support for farmers (combination of loan and subsidy)

• Decree 241/2015

There is governmental support available for farmers, and one of the types of supported projects is the construction, expansion or renovation of heating facilities working on renewable energies used for agricultural production. Up to 40% of the investment support can be granted in the form of a subsidy, and a part of the remaining investment sum can be covered with a state-guaranteed loan.
Applications are welcome on a rolling basis, and subsidy decisions are taken four times a year. The scheme is available until further notice.

The amount varies according to the type of agricultural enterprise. The subsidy part of the support can vary from 25 to 40% of the total costs, and the loan part of the support can cover up to 65%. The subsidy part can be up to 10 percentage units higher in special cases, such as for young farmers. (Annex 1, Decree 241/2015) The maximum amount of the subsidy part is up to EUR 1.5 million/addressee/3 consecutive calendar years. This includes all investment support for the farmer in question: the scheme is not exclusively for RES but it also includes other elements, such as infrastructure support for constructing farming-related buildings (art 1 Decree 241/2015).
It is possible for the state to guarantee up to 80% of the loan taken for the investment. The maximum amount of state guarantee is EUR 500.000. (Art 19 241/2015).

The instrument is available for the owners of certain types of agricultural enterprises in Finland, such as different kinds of animal farms. The articles 3-6 of the Decree 241/2015 stipulate the entities that are eligible for the support.
The addressees are required to comply with the national and EU agricultural legislation and requirements (Ruokavirasto, 2021).

The applicant submits an electronic application to the local Ely-keskus. Investment support can only be granted to projects that have not been built yet; any investments or construction works made prior to the subsidy decision cannot be reimbursed (Ruokavirasto, 2021).

Ely-keskus; Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry