Ministry issues higher support for climate-compliant agricultural equipment
The Ministry of Rural Affairs has signed off on a regulation which will support farmers in purchasing machinery and equipment which meets environmental and climate aims. The support measure is part-European Union funded and worth around €26 million.
Rural Affairs Minister Urmas Kruuse (Reform) said: "We are helping farmers to make investments which can contribute to the achievement of environmental and climate policy goals."
To that end, the support ceiling per applicant will be raised from €500,000 to €800,000 for most investments, while for the purchase of mobile machinery and equipment, the maximum amount will be hiked from €100,000, to €200,000.
The support applies to agricultural concerns with a sales revenue of more than €200,000 a year.
The Estonian Rural Development Plan 2014–2020 is financed jointly by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the Estonian state budget, and within that framework, agriculture and rural life is supported in Estonia to a total of nearly one billion euros per annum.
Minister Kruuse says it it is important to direct additional funds to investments in agriculture, in order to boost competitiveness, in addition to meeting climate goals.
The minister clarified that supported equipment must contribute to climate and environmental goal as set out at both domestic and EU level,
Applications will open from March 22.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte
