The European Investment Bank has signed a EUR 8 m loan with PR Industrial S.r.l. (“Pramac”) in order to support the Italian company in its investments in Research, Development and Innovation in the field of hand-operated forklifts and gensets. Investments include also, partly, enhancing the testing facilities and the introduction of advanced manufacturing equipment in order to strengthen product reliability, carry out extensive testing and improving manufacturing efficiency.

Pramac, headquartered in Siena (Tuscany), manufactures and distributes petrol and diesel fuelled generators and pallet handing equipment such as electric and standard hand-operated forklifts. As of end-2014, the company had four manufacturing plants (Italy, Spain, France and China) and seventeen commercial branches worldwide.

This operation is supported by ‘InnovFin – EU Finance for Innovators’ MidCap Growth finance, with the financial backing of the European Union under Horizon 2020 Financial Instruments”.

Note to editor

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals.

InnovFin financial products

Under Horizon 2020, the new EU research programme for 2014-20, the European Commission and the European Investment Bank Group (EIB and EIF) have launched a new generation of financial instruments and advisory services to help innovative firms access finance more easily. Over the next seven years, "InnovFin – EU Finance for Innovators" will offer a range of tailored products which will make available more than EUR 24bn of financing support for research and innovation (R&I) by small, medium-sized and large companies and the promoters of research infrastructures. This finance is expected to support up to EUR 48bn of final R&I investments.

InnovFin builds on the success of the Risk-Sharing Finance Facility developed under the seventh EU framework programme for research and technological development (FP7), which financed 114 R&I projects to the tune of EUR 11.3bn and in addition provided loan guarantees worth over EUR 1.4bn.

Backed by funds set aside under Horizon 2020 and by the EIB Group, InnovFin financial products support R&I activities, which by their nature are riskier and harder to assess than traditional investments, and therefore often face difficulties in accessing finance. All are demand-driven instruments, with no prior allocations between sectors, countries or regions. Firms and other entities located in EU Member States and Horizon 2020 Associated Countries will be eligible as final beneficiaries. These debt instruments will be complemented in the near future by a suite of equity instruments managed by the EIF.

InnovFin MidCap Growth Finance offers long-term senior, subordinated or mezzanine loans from EUR 7.5 to 25m for innovative larger midcaps (up to 3000 employees), but also SMEs and small midcaps.