Support for the internationalization of companies will double by 2024. Projects worth 29 million euros have already been approved, which already represent the companies’ share of the investment, but a new announcement is already underway, with applications until January 31, providing support for 18 million. If we add the individual contributions from companies, there will be a further EUR 36 million that will be used to support the diversification of international markets, which, added to the 29 million already approved, brings the total support to 65 million , within the scope of Compete 2030. , more than double compared to the 31 million invested this year for the same purpose. The increase in the export base and greater demand from companies for support for internationalization explain this growth, says the Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP), with a “greater focus on supporting the promotion of exports”.
The data was presented yesterday by Filipe Santos Costa, president of AICEP, during the 11Automotive Industry Week, an event organized by the Association of Manufacturers for the Automotive Industry. A space where national investments in the energy and digital transition were highlighted, but also in education, qualification and logistics, allowing the country to now have a successful ecosystem in the field of automobility.
And even issues related to labor shortages should be looked at on the positive side. “We should be happy that we are victims of our own success,” says this official, who classifies the automotive sector as the “engine of national growth”.
Recall that a row is at stake with more than 1,300 exporting companies, which sent their products to 182 countries around the world and contributed 14,365 million euros to national exports in 2022, representing a year-on-year growth of 14% represented. According to data collected until September, the 12 million euros exported by the sector this year, he stressed, corresponds to “a new record”, which will only not be repeated at the end of the year due to the unexpected shutdown of the production. Autoeuropa was forced out in September due to the lack of a part that came from Slovenia and was missing. A strike that was “fortunately not as serious as initially thought”, argues Filipe Santos Costa, but which served “to remind us of the need for proximity and that we cannot simply depend on imports outside the Community”, he emphasized .
Regarding support for the internationalization of companies, in the framework of joint projects, with sector associations and beyond, where AICEP is co-financier, on average in the order of 50%, this person explained that projects worth EUR 29 million, which already represents the companies’ share in the investment.
The largest share corresponds to projects in the textile, clothing and shoe industry (36.8%) and the wood, cork and furniture industry (22.1%). The shares in building materials correspond to 14.3% of investments and the agricultural food shares to 13.5%. Metallurgy and metalworking account for 8.1% of this total.
Geographically, Germany absorbs 30.2% of investments, followed by Italy (17.5%), the US (13.6%), France (12.9%), the United Kingdom (5.4%), among others and Spain (4.5%).
Meanwhile, within the framework of Compete 2030, a new announcement for external promotion has already been opened with a support amount of 18 million euros, for which applications must be submitted before January 31. If we add the contribution from companies, there will be a further EUR 36 million that will be used to support the diversification of international markets, which, added to the 29 million projects already approved, amounts to a total of EUR 65 million, more than double the amount invested in 2023. , which amounted to a total of 31 million euros.
It is also worth taking into account AICEP’s own envelope of four million euros in 2024, with which it will carry out 150 actions in more than 40 markets, including business missions abroad, sectoral campaigns and the organization of investor visits to Portugal . France, the US, China, Japan and Spain are the five main markets we need to approach. In sectoral terms, the emphasis is on moulds, metallurgy and metalworking, agro-industry, home sector and healthcare, among others.
Regarding the agency’s work in attracting foreign investment, this official recalled some of the latest projects announced for the sector, with reinforcements of existing investments, but not only that. Filipe Santos Costa believes that Portugal has “many skills” that can attract electric vehicle production to the country, namely the possibility of having the entire lithium sector in the country, with “many national and foreign investments” planned on this area. whether it be mining, refining, battery production and even end-of-life lithium recycling, he explained.
He also spoke about the focus on attracting investments in the semiconductor field, identifying potential targets, but also studying locations, considering that “it is not easy” to develop 30, 40 or 50 hectares of industrial land found in the country. Difficulties that will have to be overcome, because the goal is to bring semiconductor production to Portugal. A Memorandum of Understanding has already been signed with the South Korean group SK, the world’s third largest producer in this field, but potential investors are being approached in Japan, Germany, the US and Taiwan.
Ilídia Pinto is a journalist for Dinheiro Vivo
Source: DN
