EU news for businesses – weekly digest 20/02/2017

Supporting innovation. The European Investment Bank will host interactive seminars to present the extensive range of support and funds available to innovative and growing businesses in Bulgaria (2 March, Sofia) and Romania (3 March, Bucharest).
EU Maritime Day 2017 - 19 May, Poole, UK. The event will feature a B2B matchmaking event organised by Enterprise Europe Network member organisations. Register online.
SME Instrument companies take part in EU Industry Day. On 28 February 2017, 400 key industrial players, global trend shapers and high-level policy makers will meet in Brussels for the first ever European Industry Day. And the SME Instrument will be there with 7 ultra-innovative companies.

Investment Plan for Europe: EUR 3.5 billion for 55,000 Italian SMEs. The European Investment Fund (EIF) and the Italian Guarantee Fund for SMEs, have signed a second agreement to provide EUR 3.5 billion worth of financing for Italian small businesses under the European Commission’s COSME programme.
Investment Plan for Europe: EUR 9 million for Polish micro businesses. The EIF is providing a guarantee which will enable Nest Bank to provide over EUR 9 million worth of loans on favourable conditions to about 1,300 micro businesses in Poland over the next three years.
SEK 900 million for local infrastructure upgrades in Nordic countries. The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a SEK 900 million agreement to support investment in local infrastructure in the Nordic countries. Its focus will lie on regulated utilities, renewable energy, social and transport infrastructure projects.

CETA: creating opportunities for EU businesses in Canada. Last week, the European Parliament voted in favour of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada, concluding this deal at the EU level. The agreement will make it easier to export goods and services, benefitting people and businesses in both the EU and Canada. What will CETA do?
Late payment: Commission urges 4 Member States to comply with the Late Payment Directive to protect SMEs in their commercial relations. The European Commission is taking further steps against Greece, Italy, Slovakia and Spain to ensure the correct application of the Late Payment Directive and prevent losses to businesses – particularly, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – in these countries.

Green business: invitation to join the EU delegation to South Africa. The European Commission invites European green businesses to join a circular economy delegation to South Africa on 2-5 May 2017. The programme includes high level meetings with public authorities and B2B meetings between European and local companies. Participation is free of charge but registration in advance is required.
European Commissioner for Agriculture to visit Canada in European business offensive aimed at opening up new markets for EU agri-food products. He will travel with a delegation of up to 60 senior representatives from European companies from key sectors such as dairy, meat, wine and spirits, cereals, fruit and vegetables. Interested businesses can apply online until 3 March 2017.
Public consultation on Building the European data economy. What barriers are preventing you from scaling up your data business? The European Commission wants to hear your views. The consultation is open until 26 April 2017.

Is your business driving change in the energy sector? Apply for a Sustainable Energy Week award and show the work you are proud of! If selected among the finalists, you will be invited to Brussels to take part in the EU Sustainable Energy Week Policy Conference, the most important energy-related event in Europe. The call ends on 3 March 2017.