Funding available to Help Businesses Demonstrate the Feasibility of Capital Projects (Australia)

The ever-present ambition to grow needs to be tempered with practical steps to balance risk and growth effectively. If you are considering an investment in new capabilities or to expand operations, determining the feasibility of a project and understanding whether it makes sense from an economic point of view is a worthwhile investment.

De-risking activities, such as feasibility studies, critically assess a capital proposal and enable businesses to make more informed decisions about whether to proceed. They play an important role in determining the time and resources needed to complete a project, its benefits and its risks. If you are considering seeking outside financing, a thorough, independent feasibility study or other de-risking activities are seen pre-requisites by potential investors or lenders.

The objective of the Feasibility stream is to encourage new investments by businesses that will expand, diversify or relocate their value adding and processing operations in WA by providing funding to determine the feasibility of capital and expansion decisions.

Funding Information

• Grants available from $15,000 to $100,000 (excluding GST). The stream provides funds to eligible applicants towards feasibility studies and other de-risking activities to support an investment decision for eligible capital projects.

What you can use funding for

• Eligible businesses can apply for funding for planning/feasibility activities which you plan to use to support an investment decision for qualifying capital investment or expansion projects relating to food and beverage manufacturing or other forms of value add processing in WA.
• Funds must be used to engage the relevant expertise to gather the information needed to de-risk a project and support an investment decision. The types of services used for the purpose of assessing if an investment project is feasible include:
  • Technical consultants
  • Professional services including, accounting, tax, legal and other services
  • Property related services including architect, planners, designers and valuers
  • Product or market analysts and advisors
  • Specialist reports and data services as may be applicable
  • Other advisors or relevant service providers
  • Obtaining regulatory approvals
  • Obtaining licences necessary to grow operations.

Eligibility Criteria

• A business must meet BOTH the applicant eligibility criteria AND the planned feasibility activities must be for specific types of investment or expansion projects as outlined below in order to apply for a grant.
• FIRST, you must meet ALL the following applicant eligibility criteria:
  • Be a private sector business registered with ASIC or registered for an Australian Business Number (ABN) with annual sales turnover of at least $100,000;
  • Be a ‘going concern’ – i.e., will continue to trade into the foreseeable future and there are no plans, events and/or circumstances known to the Applicant which would result in their business ceasing to trade;
  • Be planning a project located in, or looking to relocate operations to, regional and/or metropolitan Western Australia;
  • Be capable of entering into a legally binding agreement with the Western Australian Government;
  • Have the financial capacity to fund the minimum cash contribution (30% of the total project budget);
  • Aboriginal business applicants that do not have a 30% cash contribution towards the project but can demonstrate in-kind and or a lesser cash leverage may be considered on a case-by-case basis; and
  • Have been in operation for a minimum of 12 months (or similar established track record).
• SECOND, your FEASIBILITY project must meet the below project eligibility criteria:
  • Your feasibility project must be for the planning and development of qualifying capital investment and expansion projects associated with food and beverage manufacturing or other forms of value add processing in WA; AND
  • Must be related to one or more of the following qualifying capital investment and expansion projects:
  • Investment in new manufacturing capability or processing facilities, new technology or plant modernisation which results in reducing WA’s reliance on imported products, supports business growth, fosters innovation and creates jobs;
  • Investment that improves sustainability, reduces the environmental impact of the manufacturing or processing activities being undertaken or contributes to improvements in broader environmental, social, and governance outcomes;
  • Investment that enables expansion or diversification of business operations that relate to value adding to primary production in WA; or
  • Investment that involves relocating existing operations to WA, setting up new operations or expanding existing operations in WA.
• Regional and Aboriginal businesses are encouraged to apply.
• Business clusters, consortiums, and collaborations are also encouraged to apply where a lead business is defined that meets the above criteria and applies and accepts responsibility for contractual obligations on behalf of the business group.

For more information, visit DPIRD.