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Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Examiner
The red tape that stalled farm loans — and the road back for Microfinance Ireland
Administrative arrangements with Microfinance Ireland to allow them to recommence lending to farmers are currently being finalised with the Department of Agriculture. Over 10 years since 2013, Microfinance Ireland has made 182 loans to Irish farmers, totalling €3,252,368. But this valuable source of credit for Irish farmers is cut off since 2023, until Microfinance Ireland complies with new EU agriculture state aid requirements, including new legal arrangements for data sharing between Microfinance Ireland and the Department of Agriculture. This has been the case since the EU's Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework ceased in December 2023, and Microfinance Ireland had to change over to providing loans under the newly applicable State Aid Framework, which is the De Minimis Regulation. Now, agriculture minister Martin Heydon has told the Dáil a statutory instrument to allow the sharing of data between third-party agri-loan providers and his department has been finalised. It was signed into law on April 4 last, completing the first step to allow Microfinance Ireland to recommence lending to farmers. The minister was answering a Dáil question from Fianna Fáil TD Albert Dolan. Microfinance Ireland was set up by the government to help micro-enterprises that cannot get funding from the main banks. It is a not-for-profit organisation that does not compete with the main banks, and predominantly supports start-ups, with loans at low interest rate charges relative to the credit risk. Microfinance Ireland provides loans from €2,000 up to €50,000 to businesses that do not meet the conventional risk criteria applied by commercial lenders. Since 2023, it has continued lending to non-agriculture businesses. Microfinance Ireland assists businesses with fewer than 10 employees to meet payments for stock, working capital requirements, and other overhead expenses. In September 2024, Microfinance Ireland increased the permitted loan limit from €25,000 to €50,000. The loan term is typically three years for working capital purposes, and can be extended to five years for capital expenditures. Loan records indicate the main farming enterprises supported up to the end of 2023 were dairy and cattle farms, taking out 34 loans totalling €642,749, and 28 loans totalling €455,900, respectively. There were 21 loans totalling €344,000 for mixed farming, 14 loans totalling €214,999 to support activities for animal production, 13 loans totalling €171,074 to horticultural growers, and 12 loans totalling €197,499 for poultry production. Microfinance Ireland made 41 loans to farmers in 2020, totalling €950,600; 29 loans in 2021, totalling €558,300; 14 loans in 2022, totalling €255,024; and 14 loans in 2023, totalling €225,000. There were zero loans in 2024 and 2025 to agriculture. Where Microfinance Ireland offers loans to farmers, it must ensure such loans comply with relevant EU state aid regulations. Read More State aid fix to unlock farm loans from Microfinance Ireland
Fibre2Fashion
26-06-2025
- Business
- Fibre2Fashion
EU eases state aid rules to boost green projects, cut carbon footprint
The European Commission yesterday adopted a new state aid framework supporting the Clean Industrial Deal (CISAF) to enable member states to push forward the development of clean energy, industrial decarbonisation and clean technology. The CISAF sets out the conditions under which member states can grant support for certain investments and objectives in line with European Union (EU) state aid rules, which exist to prevent government support leading to a company gaining a distortive advantage over its competitors. The European Commission has adopted a new state aid framework supporting the Clean Industrial Deal to enable members to push forward clean energy development, industrial decarbonisation and clean tech. The framework that backs both renewables and low-carbon fuels will authorise aid schemes introduced by members to boost clean industry, enabling the swift rollout of individual aid. Under the framework, the Commission will authorise aid schemes introduced by member states to boost clean industry, enabling the swift rollout of individual aid. The CISAF will be in place until December 31, 2030, giving member states and businesses long-term predictability. It replaces the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework (TCTF), which was in place since 2022. The framework simplifies state aid rules in five main areas: the roll-out of renewable energy and low-carbon fuels; temporary electricity price relief for energy-intensive users to ensure the transition to low-cost clean electricity; decarbonisation of existing production facilities; the development of clean tech manufacturing capacity in the EU; and the de-risking of investments in clean energy, decarbonisation, clean tech, energy infrastructure projects and projects supporting the circular economy. The new framework covers support for both renewable energy and low-carbon fuels. The CISAF introduces simplified procedures to enable the quick roll-out of renewable energy schemes. Low-carbon fuels, such as blue and green hydrogen, also play a key role in reducing emissions. They support the transition for companies in 'hard-to-decarbonise' sectors, where more energy or cost-efficient options are not yet viable, an official release said. New rules on flexibility measures and capacity mechanisms give member states additional tools to integrate intermittent renewable electricity sources into the energy supply, while ensuring consumers benefit from reliable electricity supply. The CISAF defines 'target model' capacity mechanisms, where member states pay electricity providers to maintain standby capacity, which can qualify for 'fast-track' approval. Other designs will be assessed under the Climate, Environmental protection and Energy Aid Guidelines (CEEAG). Member states may provide electricity price support for energy-intensive users and companies operating in sectors particularly exposed to international trade. This will allow member states to reduce the electricity costs of energy-intensive users that face higher costs than competitors in regions with less ambitious climate policies. In return for receiving price support, companies will be required to invest in decarbonisation. The framework allows for support for a wide array of decarbonisation technologies such as electrification, hydrogen, biomass, carbon capture utilisation and storage. Support can be granted based on predefined aid amounts (for support up to €200 million), the funding gap or a competitive bidding process. The framework also allows for support for the production and processing of critical raw materials necessary for clean technologies. To safeguard cohesion between different regions in Europe, member states will be able to provide more support for projects in less advantaged regions, which are defined in regional aid maps. In addition, the framework allows member states to stimulate demand for clean technology products by offering tax incentives, such as allowing companies to deduct the cost of clean technology investments from their taxable income more quickly. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
