The branch where the investment is carried out must be located in the Flemish Region. It must be registered as a branch of the company in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises. If the company does not yet have a registered establishment in the Flemish Region at the time of the support application, it must register one during the execution of the ecological investments.
In addition, the following conditions apply at company level:

• All establishments of the applicant that fall within the scope of EBO Flanders must have joined an energy policy agreement and comply with its conditions.
• The applicant must comply with the regulations applicable in the Flemish Region for up to five years after completion of the ecological investments.
• The ecological investments must be operated and retained by the applicant for five years. This period starts from the completion of the investments. The “date of completion” means the latest date of either the final invoice, the deed for the acquisition of immovable property eligible for support, or the signing of the final or only financial leasing agreement.

Not eligible:

• Undertakings in difficulty
• Non-profit organisations (vzw’s)
  As a non-profit organisation, you may still be eligible under other calls, for example GREEN.
• Undertakings over which an administrative authority exercises a dominant influence
  (there is a rebuttable presumption of dominant influence where public participation is 50% or more, direct or indirect), except for projects relating to the construction of heat networks, shore-power electricity, energy sharing and industrial water treatment, but only when these investments are financed with private funds.
• Undertakings in a legal state of dissolution, cessation, bankruptcy or liquidation, undertakings subject to insolvency proceedings, or undertakings against which a European recovery procedure for aid is pending
• Ecological investments used for an activity in the primary sector
  (i.e. agriculture or fisheries/aquaculture). Undertakings whose main activity is in the primary sector may still receive support for an investment related to an activity other than the primary sector (this may be the case for certain supporting services or secondary activities, such as a B&B or a shop).
• Ecological investments that are not used for professional purposes or are being rented out 

Explanation of acceptable legal form

The applicant must be an enterprise. An “enterprise” is understood to mean: any natural person who independently carries out a professional activity, companies with legal personality, and European Economic Interest Groupings.

Companies with legal personality are:

• public limited liability company (nv)
• private limited liability company (bv)
• cooperative society (cv or cvoa)
• general partnership (vof)
• ordinary limited partnership (CommV)
• European company (SE)
• European Cooperative Society (SCE)

A partnership (maatschap) does not have legal personality and is therefore not eligible.

Financing through an asset management company

The investments may be managed by an asset management company that is part of the same group as the applicant company. The companies are considered part of the same group in one of the following cases:

• the asset management company has a direct or indirect participation of at least 25% in the applicant company;
• the applicant company directly or indirectly owns at least 25% of the asset management company;
• a natural person or legal entity directly or indirectly participates at least 25% in both companies.

When financing investments through an asset management company, the operating company should apply for the subsidy. The financial accounting and depreciation are carried out at the asset management company. The applicant operating company receives the actual environmental subsidy funds. The application of the five-year period means making the amount available to the subsidy applicant company for five years.

Implementation outside the applicant’s own branch 

The applicant may carry out and operate the ecological investments at a branch of another enterprise. The applicant may only carry out and operate the ecological investments for the benefit of one other enterprise, for a period of at least 5 years. Both the applicant and the enterprise where the investments are carried out must comply with the conditions referred to in articles 4 to 10 of the Decree of the Flemish Government of 19 April 2024.

For example, neither the applicant nor the enterprise where the investment is made may be an undertaking in difficulty, and both must have an acceptable legal form. There are also restrictions relating to the legal status of these enterprises, and both must comply with all previously mentioned admissibility conditions.