PR Vest innovation in SMEs: €25 million, up to €2.5 million per project, guide in consultation

The Regional Development Agency West (ADR Vest) has put out for public consultation the guide for the preselection of project sheets for Regional Intervention 1.1.B "Support for innovation in SMEs" under the West Regional Programme 2021-2027. The budget is €25 million. Partnerships made up of a lead SME and one or more research organisations from the West Region can request between €200,000 and €2.5 million in non-refundable funding per project. The guide is still in consultation and may change. The submission period for the sheets has not been set: it will be announced in the call itself.

In brief

• Programme: West Regional Programme 2021-2027, Regional Intervention 1.1.B "Support for innovation in SMEs" (specific objective RSO1.1)
• Authority: ADR Vest
• Beneficiaries: partnerships in which the lead must be a micro-enterprise or an SME, and the partners are one or more public or private research organisations from the West Region
• Total budget: €25 million (€21.25 million from the ERDF and €3.75 million from the state budget)
• Value per project: between €200,000 and €2.5 million in non-refundable funding: a maximum of €1.5 million for research and development and a maximum of €1 million for production capacity
• Procedure: in two stages. First, project sheets are submitted for preselection, then the funding application is submitted in MySMIS2021/SMIS2021+
• Status: the preselection guide is in public consultation (document dated 8 October 2026). The submission period has not yet been announced

Who can apply?

The project must be submitted in partnership. The lead is an SME, and the partners are research organisations from the West Region, with complementary scientific expertise and research infrastructure. According to the guide in consultation, the lead SME must:

• be registered with the Trade Register by 31 December 2023 at the latest and not have suspended its activity in the 2 calendar years before the sheet is submitted;
• have its main or secondary office in the West Region (Timiș, Arad, Hunedoara, Caraș-Severin) and have been active in 2024 and 2025;
• work in a production field covered by one or more CAEN codes (Romanian NACE codes) listed in Annex 3 to the guide;
• propose a project that falls within one of the region's five smart specialisation areas: agriculture and food industry; energy efficiency and sustainable construction; manufacturing; ICT and automotive; tourism, health and quality of life.

The amount requested is capped, also depending on turnover. The guide states that funding cannot exceed 30% of the SME's average turnover for the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years. Another section gives a cap of 50% of the same average. The final version should clarify which cap applies.

What is funded, and at what intensity?

The eligible activities are:

• industrial research: formulating the concept, the laboratory prototype;
• experimental development: commercial prototypes, validation in a relevant environment;
• innovation activities, for example protecting patents and innovation consultancy (for the lead SME only);
• developing production capacity for the innovative solution, i.e. productive investment (also for the lead SME only).

The aid is granted under Regulation (EU) No 651/2014. The intensities in the guide in consultation are:

• Industrial research: 80% for micro-enterprises and small enterprises, 75% for medium-sized enterprises;
• Experimental development: 60% for micro and small enterprises, 50% for medium-sized ones;
• SME innovation: 50%;
• Regional aid for productive investment: 50%/40% in Arad and Timiș, 60%/50% in Caraș-Severin, 70%/60% in Hunedoara (micro and small/medium-sized).

The intensities for research and development already include an increase of 15 percentage points. The increase is granted only if the SME and the research organisation genuinely collaborate. Non-economic activities of public-law research organisations can be funded up to 100%. The project must be implemented by 31 December 2029, and the investment must be maintained in the West Region for at least 5 years from the last payment.

How will you apply?

In the first stage, the project sheet (Annex 1) and the implementation plan (Annex 1.1) are sent by e-mail to inovareimm@adrvest.ro. The documents are drawn up in Romanian and signed with a qualified electronic signature. The opening and closing dates will be set in the actual call.

The preselection committee checks the sheets against YES/NO criteria: applicant eligibility, the CAEN code, fit with the purpose of the intervention, development capacity, feasibility and the credibility of the production launch. The applicant may be called to an interview. The lead may submit several sheets. If more than one is admitted, it can request funding for only one of them. Only admitted sheets move on to the second stage, with the full funding application in MySMIS2021/SMIS2021+.

What this means for your business

Consultant's recommendation: this intervention suits a manufacturing SME that already has a concrete technical problem and wants to turn it, together with a university or institute, into a product made in the region. It is not funding for standard equipment. The production component, of at most €1 million, comes only after the research result.

• Look for your partner now. The agreement with the research organisation, and the division of activities and of rights over the results, take weeks. The sheet must show who carries out the research and who industrialises the result.
• Check your turnover. With the cap of 30% of the 2024–2025 average, a €2.5 million grant requires an average turnover of over €8.3 million. Smaller companies will request less.
• Check your CAEN code in Annex 3 and the fit with the smart specialisation areas before you start work on the project.
• Prepare your co-financing. In the sheet, the SME commits that it can cover its own contribution and the ineligible costs. For experimental development, the own contribution can reach half of the costs, and for investment in Arad or Timiș, 60% for medium-sized enterprises.

You can quickly check your company's eligibility with the eligibility check.

Frequently asked questions

Can I submit the project on my own, without a university or institute?

No. The guide in consultation requires a partnership in which the SME is the lead and at least one public or private research organisation from the West Region is a partner.

When can the project sheets be submitted?

The date has not been announced yet. The guide is in public consultation, and the submission period will be set when the call is launched. The sheets will be sent by e-mail, with a qualified electronic signature.

Can a company set up in 2024 apply?

No, according to the guide in consultation. The lead SME must be registered by 31 December 2023 at the latest and have been active in 2024 and 2025, the years also used to calculate the cap relative to turnover.

How much can the research organisation receive?

Non-economic activities of public-law research organisations can be funded up to 100%. If the organisation carries out economic activities in the project, the own contribution requirement also applies to it.

Can the production line also be funded?

Yes, through the production capacity development component, of at most €1 million. It is available only to the lead SME and is granted as regional aid, with intensities between 40% and 70%, depending on the county and the size of the company.

Official sources

• EU Opportunities: PR Vest has put out for public consultation the guide on the preselection of project sheets for "Support for innovation in SMEs"
• ADR Vest: Guide on the preselection of project sheets, IR 1.1.B SME Innovation (public consultation)
• ADR Vest: annexes to the preselection guide (archive)
• West Regional Programme: Support for innovation

Information checked on 11 October 2026. Conditions may be changed by the managing authority — check the guide in force before you submit.