ISI call for tenders: 65 million for innovative agricultural machinery

The window for the online submission of applications for the new ISI Agricoltura 2019/2020, which starts with a budget of €65 million, opened on 15 July.  The new initiative, launched by Inail to replace the previous Isi call for tenders (see Machinery World 1, January 2020), first suspended and then definitively withdrawn at the end of May, aims to promote investments in health safety at work. Specifically, the new ISI call for tenders makes it easier for micro and small companies in the primary sector to purchase innovative tractors and agricultural equipment. Namely, for purchasing technologies that significantly reduce polluting emissions, noise levels, or injury risks. Two funding lines are planned. With a budget of EUR 53 million, the first is allocated to agricultural holdings in general, whereas the second, on the other hand, has a budget of EUR 12 million and is intended only for young farmers. The funding - Inail website states - is in the capital account and is calculated based on VAT’s eligible expenses net. The coverage varies according to the beneficiaries for young farmers; funding is 50% of eligible expenditure, 40% for all other farmers. The minimum and the maximum amount payable, on the other hand, are the same for everyone: it starts at one thousand euros and goes up to a maximum of 60,000. The IT procedure for the submission of applications ends on 24 September 2020. All information and procedures foreseen by the new ISI call are available on the Inail website (www.inail.it).