STEP RI Science and Technology Park of the University of Rijeka Ltd., as the coordinator of the EDIH Adria consortium, announces a call for the use of digital transformation services and the award of de minimis aid.
The services are implemented through the EDIH Adria 2.0 project, co-financed by the Digital Europe Programme (DEP) and the Competitiveness and Cohesion Programme 2021-2027. (PKK). The information, visibility and communication obligations of the project financing agreement shall apply to the publication of the call and the implementation of the services.
All services from this call are provided to users free of charge.
For undertakings, part of the value of the PKK-funded service is recorded as low-value non-financial support. The aid amount per service is indicated in the table.
| Service name | Nominal price | Amount of de minimis aid granted to undertakings | Unit of measure | Planned duration | Payment by the user (€) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Innovation Lab TBI service (testing before investing in digital innovation) | min. €8000, Max. €35,000 | min. € 4,000, Max. €17,500 | 1.000 € / service unit | 2 - 6 months | 0 |
| Transformation Laboratory TBI Service (testing before investing in digital transformation) | min. €8000, Max. €35,000 | min. € 4,000, Max. €17,500 | 1.000 € / service unit | 2 - 6 months | 0 |
| Fast access to EU AI infrastructure and solutions | min. €5,000, Max. €15,000 | min. € 2,500, Max. €7.500 | 1.000 € / service unit | Max. 2 months | 0 |
| Assessment of data usability (data analysis) | min. € 4,000, Max. €10,000 | min. € 2,000, Max. €5,000 | 1.000 € / service unit | Max. 1 month | 0 |
| Bootcamps for digital innovation and transformation | 5000 € | 2500 € | 5.000 € / intensive training (bootcamp) | 2-day event + support up to 1 month | 0 |
| Digitalisation Action Plan | min. € 4,000, Max. €10,000 | min. € 2,000, Max. €5,000 | 1.000 € / service unit | Max. 1 month | 0 |
| Assessment of Financial Capacities and Opportunities | min. € 4,000, Max. €10,000 | min. € 2,000, Max. €5,000 | 1.000 € / service unit | Max. 1 month | 0 |
| Education for technology users and non-IT workforce | min. 200 €, Max. €1,000 | min. 100 €, Max. €500 | 100 €/educational unit | Max. 1 semester | 0 |
| Education for IT workforce and experts | min. 200 €, Max. €1,000 | min. 100 €, Max. €500 | 100 €/educational unit | Max. 1 semester | 0 |
| Awareness-raising training | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 - 8 hours | 0 |
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Services:
be adapted to the duration and value of the individual user.
Service descriptions are available on the EDIH Adria website.
The services are provided by EDIH Adria consortium, consisting of STEP RI Science and Technology Park of the University of Rijeka d.o.o. (coordinator of the consortium) and the University of Rijeka, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Rijeka Development Agency PORIN d.o.o., Ericsson Nikola Tesla d.d. and Velebit artificial intelligence d.o.o.
The member or members who will provide a particular service shall be determined after considering the needs of the user and the available professional capacities.
Eligible users of the services are:
N.B.: The TBI Innovation Lab service can only be used by entrepreneurs.
A prerequisite for the use of all services other than education is the implementation of the Digital Maturity Assessment before using the services and the commitment to the Digital Maturity Assessment on two occasions after the delivered service, upon the invitation of EDIH Adria consortium.
Following the service provided, the beneficiary shall validate a report on its implementation, including the value of the service provided and, where applicable, the amount of aid.
One user can use multiple EDIH Adria services.
The services are provided in accordance with Grant Agreement No 101256325 concluded between the European Commission and EDIH Adria consortium.
The provision of EDIH Adria services to beneficiaries who are undertakings involves the granting of de minimis aid.
Granting authority
The formal grantor of the de minimis aid is the Ministry of the Economy.
EDIH Adria carries out the process, verifies beneficiaries and provides services as an intermediary in the aid award process.
Amount of aid
The PKK contribution to the service is low-value non-financial support, DEP funds are not included in this amount.
The table shows the amount of aid from the PKK of 50 % the nominal value of the service. The final range of services with a range of values shall be determined for the individual beneficiary before the decision to grant the aid is taken.
Regulating the granting of aid
The procedure for granting the aid shall be regulated and carried out in accordance with:
– Commission Regulation (EU) No 2023/2831 of 13 December 2023 on the application of Articles 107 and 108 TFEU; of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to de minimis aid (OJ EU L 2023/2831, 15.12.2023) (hereinafter: de minimis Regulation). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/HR/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:L_202302831,
– Programom dodjele potpora male vrijednosti za aktivnosti Europskih digitalnih inovacijskih centara (usmjerenih pružanju usluga poduzetnicima), od dana 28. rujna 2026., KLASA: 910-04/26-01/9 URBROJ: 526-09-01-01-01-26-1. Program je objavljen na mrežnoj stranici Ministarstva gospodarstva: https://mingo.gov.hr/javni-pozivi-i-natjecaji-7371/uprava-za-programe-i-projekte-eu-europske-i-medjunarodne-poslove-7394/programi-potpora/7562.
– Instructions for the operation and use of the services of the European Digital Innovation Hubs (hereinafter: Instructions),
– this invitation.
The Programme and the Instructions are attached to this Call and form an integral part of it. The eligibility conditions, proof of compliance with the eligibility conditions, the award procedure and the adoption of the award decision are regulated in detail by the above-mentioned documents.
The application process has 2 phases.
In the first stage, the applicant submits an expression of interest, which is accepted or rejected by the consortium. Applicants whose expressions of interest have been accepted are referred to Phase 2, i.e. the eligibility and award phase of de minimis aid, where applicable.
PHASE 1 - Expression of interest
The applicant expresses interest in EDIH Adria services through the application form available on the EDIH Adria website.
Based on the declared interest, an initial interview with the applicant is conducted and is referred to the fulfilment of the expression of interest for individual or individual services.
Bootcamps for digital innovation and transformation
The terms of bootcamps and application deadlines for each term will be published on the EDIH Adria website.
The applicant fills in the expression of interest for the Bootcampovi service for digital innovation and transformation via an individual link that will be provided to the applicant after the initial interview. If necessary, EDIH Adria requests further clarifications.
The expressions of interest are assessed according to three criteria: the business reasons for the participation and composition of the participants, the potential value and impact of the investment and the implementation capacity of the applicant. Each criterion has the same number of points (1 to 5).
The applicant shall be informed of the acceptance or non-acceptance of the expression of interest.
If necessary, it may be referred to another appropriate EDIH Adria service or other EDIH.
Assessment of data usability
The applicant fills in the expression of interest for the Data Usability Assessment via an individual link that will be provided to him/her after the initial interview. If necessary, EDIH Adria requests further clarifications.
The expression of interest is considered according to whether the described need corresponds to the content of the DUA service and whether the consortium has the expertise to implement it.
The applicant shall be informed of the acceptance or non-acceptance of the expression of interest.
If the Data Usability Assessment is not an appropriate service, it shall be referred to another EDIH Adria service or another EDIH, as appropriate.
Testing before investing
(TBI service innovation laboratory, TBI service transformation laboratory, Quick access to EU AI infrastructure and solutions)
The applicant fills in the expression of interest for the respective type of Pre-investment Testing service via an individual link that will be provided to the applicant after the initial interview. If necessary, EDIH Adria requests further clarifications. The dates by which expressions of interest are included in each evaluation cycle (cut-off date) are the last day of the month, except July and August, a total of 10 dates per year.
The expressions of interest shall be assessed according to the following criteria: Elimination criteria are the fulfilment of the conditions of compliance of the proposal with the corresponding Testing before Investment service and the possibility for the consortium to provide the necessary support. If both conditions are met, the maturity of the proposal (1-10 points), the expected impact (1-5 points) and the willingness of the applicant to participate (1-5 points) are scored. According to the selection procedure, the expression of interest must score at least 42 out of a possible 60 points. In doing so, the maturity of the proposal must be scored with at least 6 points and the expected impact and willingness to participate with at least 4 points each. Expressions of interest that meet the prescribed thresholds are ranked in each evaluation cycle according to the obtained points and available professional capacities.
The applicant is informed whether their expression of interest has been accepted, not accepted or will be considered in the next cycle. Where appropriate, it may be referred to another relevant service or other EDIH.
Education
(Education for Technology Users and Non-IT Workforce, Education for IT Workforce and Professionals, Awareness Raising Education)
Terms of education and deadlines for registration for a particular term are published on the EDIH Adria website with this call. For each training, the target group, the content, value and deminimis of the support per participant, the method and time and place of the event, the application deadline and the number of available places are published. Registered users are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis and until available places are filled.
Each student applies separately via the link available in the invitation to education published on the EDIH Adria website.
Digitalisation Action Plan and Assessment of Financial Capacities and Opportunities
The Digitalisation Action Plan and the Assessment of Financial Capacities and Opportunities under this call are available as follow-up services after the Testing before Investment service has been provided. Based on the results of the service and the interview with the beneficiary, it is assessed whether the proposed service corresponds to its further need and whether the consortium can provide it to the required extent. The user is then provided with instructions for submitting a separate expression of interest or request via an individual link.
The user is informed of the acceptance or non-acceptance of the expression of interest. If the Digitalisation Action Plan and the Assessment of Financial Capacities and Opportunities are not an appropriate next step, it shall be referred to another service or form of support as appropriate.
PHASE 2 - Expression of interest
Upon acceptance of the expression of interest, the applicant shall submit, upon invitation by the coordinator, the forms and other documentation required by the Instructions. The coordinator shall verify the completeness of the notification, the eligibility of the applicant and the service and, for the undertaking, the possibility and amount of the grant of de minimis aid. The decision to grant the aid shall be taken only after that check has been completed.
An integral part of this call is:
Any modification of a public call shall be published on the same website prior to its application.
The public call is open from the day of publication until 31 October 2028 or until the funds are used.