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France ahoy!
Maritime Business Day
Feb. 10th 2016 Helsinki
Axel Berggren Lagercrantz,
Senior Investment Advisor, Business France

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Contents
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I/ Who we are, what we do
Quick presentation of Business France
II/ France’s pro-business reform agenda
France’s ongoing main reforms to ease business in France.
III/ Getting support in France
Governmental and financial aid.
IV/ The Pays-de-la-Loire region
Strengths and opportunities
Launching of the liner ”Le France” at Saint Nazaire, 1960
Credits : Landau, Gérard / INA

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I / Who we are,
What we do

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Who we are
• Business France is the French government agency supporting the international
development of the French economy.
It was founded on the 1st January 2015, through the merger of the Invest in France
Agency (IFA), and UBIFRANCE, the French Trade Commission.
• Business France falls under the authority of three ministries: the Ministry for the
Economy, Industry and Digital Affairs; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
International Development; and the Ministry for Housing, Regional Equality and
Rural Affairs.
Introduction

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Introduction
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Our missions
• Trade: Supporting the French business sector and economic interests abroad
• Invest: Facilitating foreign investment in France
• Communication: Promoting France’s business image and nationwide attractiveness
• V.I.E: Implementing the V.I.E international internship program on foreign markets
Business France employs 1500 professionals and has 85 offices all over the world

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Introduction
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Key facts about Business France
in the Nordic countries:
• 40 people working in 4 offices : 4 Trade
teams and one Invest hub in Stockholm
covering the region.
Latvia and Lithuania are linked to the
Business France Central Europe office
Business France offices in
the Nordic countries
trade invest

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A starting point to invest in France
Business France facilitates foreign companies’ investments in
France:
• Strategic investment guidance: acquisitions, extension
of existing operations, creation of new operations...
• Tailored business advice: financial and fiscal
incentives, location of suitable real estate, facilitating negotiations and recruitments…
• Contacts and networks: close collaboration with 22 regional economic development
agencies giving access to a large support network
• Suggestions for improvement: we listen to foreign investors and communicate
proposals to the French government
Our services:
Invest

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II / France’s pro-business
reform agenda:
• Lightening taxes, increasing competitiveness
• More flexibility for businesses
• Shake the administration
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1. “Tax Credit For Competitiveness And Employment” (CICE)
‒ Launched in 2013, this tax credit boosts corporate competitiveness through tax savings worth 6% of
gross payroll costs in 2015, excluding all salaries greater than 2.5 times the national minimum wage
(SMIC), amounting to €20 billion in annual savings for companies in 2014 and the years to come.
‒ As of January 2015, employers of minimum wage employees are no longer required to pay any social
security contributions. The cost of labour has since decreased by over €4,000 per year.
Lightening taxes, increasing
competitiveness

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2. Law on Manufacturing Investment
‒ For a year (between April 15, 2015 and April 15, 2016), manufacturing investments carried out by
companies will be eligible for a one-off tax break so as to provide an immediate boost to corporate
investment and competitiveness. All companies will be able to reduce their corporate tax bill
immediately in line with the amount invested.
‒ The depreciation allowance will equate to 40% of the cost price of the investment. For companies
subject to the standard rate of corporate tax (33.33%), the new measure will amount to a tax
deduction of more than 13% of the value of the investment, if carried out immediately.
‒ For assets with a four-year operating life, the supplementary allowance will be 10% per year, i.e. an
additional tax break equating to 3.4% of the cost price per year.
Lightening taxes, increasing
competitiveness

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3. Restructuration of corporate tax
‒ The Corporate tax is to fall starting in 2017 to a standard rate of 28% by 2020. Also, the corporate
social solidarity contribution will be abolished in 2017. As of 2015, this tax will be reduced for all
companies and abolished for two-thirds of those currently liable for it (about 200,000 companies)
‒ The exceptional corporate tax contribution will be abolished in 2016, while the so-called “75%” tax
on incomes over €1 million has already been abolished (January 2015).
‒ Implementation of the charter concerning non-retroactivity for tax issues (January 2015): changes
to taxation law will no longer affect the current or previous financial years.
‒ Work in progress: several dozen small and overly-complex taxes which generate very little revenue
will be abolished.
Lightening taxes, increasing
competitiveness

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Lightening taxes, increasing
competitiveness
4. France’s research tax credit - the “CIR”: the best in Europe
‒ Open to all companies, it covers 30% of all R&D expenses up to €100 million, and 5% above this
threshold.
‒ Covers not only R&D spending but also innovation expenses incurred by SMEs, at a rate of 20%
(up to €400,000 a year). Total tax relief for research tax credit recipients amounted to more than
€6 billion in 2013. All companies incurring R&D expenses are eligible, regardless of their size,
business sector and nationality. 16,000 companies received France’s research tax credit in 2013.
‒ Limits on subsidies for an experimental development project are raised from 25% to 40% when
the project is conducted as part of a partnership, for example in one of France’s 71 Innovation
Clusters.
‒ All expenditure contracted out to public-sector bodies is double-counted, thereby effectively
doubling the research tax credit (up to €12 million). Salaries paid to junior final-year doctoral and
post-doctoral research personnel on their first permanent contract are quadruple-counted for
two years.

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1. The New Employment Act
‒ Passed in June 2013, this measure responds to the needs of companies for adjusted output and
enhanced social dialogue, and intends to improve the performance of the French labor market.
‒ It introduces greater flexibility for employers to adjust working hours and employee pay over a
two-year period during an economic downturn, simplifies collective layoff procedures and
encourages mediation: shorter timeframes, and marked decrease in litigation.
‒ This Act demonstrates that France is capable of reform through negotiation, and allows a better
anticipation of changes within companies.
More flexibility for businesses

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2. “Growth and Economic Activity Bill”
‒ Adopted by the Parliament in August 2015 and currently being implemented. The goal of this law
is to foster growth, investment and employment.
‒ Thanks to a clearer legal framework, it liberalizes some non-competitive sectors such as coach
traveling and gives more flexibility to Sunday work and evening trading rules in defined
commercial and touristic areas. To be continued…
‒ … The Government is indeed already working on further development of this law. It would target
more specifically the digital sector, innovation, the modernization of the energy sector and
further simplification of the labor market.
More flexibility for businesses

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1. The “Council for Simplification”
‒ Co-chaired by a Member of Parliament and a business executive, the Council has been set in
2014 to drive the “Simplification Shock” process.
‒ It has identified ten key areas of reform, reflecting the practical needs of
companies. Exactly 3 months after its creation, 50 measures were proposed to
the French President, most of them became effective on the 1st of January 2015.
‒ Each of the 10 areas highlighted for simplification by the Business Simplification Council will
receive input from the head of a foreign subsidiary operating in France.
Shake the administration
The ”Simplification Shock”

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2. Make it easier to settle in France
‒ Introduction of the “Tax4business Service”: a tool for foreign investors which helps them
setting up and doing business in France in a secure legal framework and which makes the
tax system clearer and predictable.
‒ Companies now have a single interlocutor for investing in France, Business France: a
dedicated professional and business-friendly agency based on the best international
standards.
‒ Accounting requirements for SMEs have been radically simplified, generating savings of
more than € 100 million.
Shake the administration
The ”Simplification Shock”

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III/ Getting support in
France

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Getting support in France
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A wide array of supports : Interest-free loans, grants, reduced real estate costs, tax
exemptions, exemptions from employer social security contributions, tax credits, covering of
specific costs (e.g. training costs for example), Government guarantees and equity investment.
Who provides national support?
• Central Government
• Local authorities (Regions)
• Government agencies (ADEME, Bpi...)

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In France, government support to investors has to comply with EU rules. As a consequence,
support for the project depends on
• The duration and the location of the project, which determine if support can be
granted or not
• The size of the company and the nature of the project, which determine the amount
that can be granted.
Investors can also find financial support through France’s Public Investment Bank (BpiFrance)
and the banking sector
St Nazaire is a PAT zone: regional governement support for companies  up to €15 000 per job
created ( for an investment of at least €3 million and at least 20 jobs created)
Getting support in France

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France’s Public Investment Bank (BPI)
‒ Created at the beginning of 2013, the BPI offers companies, and particularly SMEs or midsize
companies, a tailored funding service via a broad range of financial instruments and advices, so as
to support them at every stage of their development. The bank has a funding capacity of €42
billion.
‒ Nearly 60,000 companies were supported during the first nine months of 2013.
Getting support in France

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IV/ The Pays-de-la-Loire
region

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Key figures
• 3,539 million inhabitants
+ 35,100 people a year
= Eventually more than 500,000 additional inhabitants by 2030
• 26 % of the population is under 20
• Same size as Belgium
• GDP: 27,881€ /head
• Port of Nantes Saint-Nazaire: 1st Atlantic port in France
• 450 km of Atlantic coastline
1st

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Strong maritime industry
Land of world leaders
360 companies and > 10,000 employees (including subcontractors)
Shipbuilding
Over 7,000 FTE jobs, including 3,000 working directly for shipbuilding
80 establishments in shipbuilding
About 80% of the French shipbuilding industry is for export
Boat building
Over 6,500 jobs, of which a significant portion are concentrated at
STX and Bénéteau, that is 16.6% of the French workforce
World leader for boating industry (20% of the French turnover)
69 establishments in boat building = 15% of French companies

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IRT Jules Verne
1st Technological Research
Institute (IRT) officially certified
in France:
● 4 industrial sectors.
aerospace, shipbuilding,
energy and land transport
● €267 m research budget
● 70,000 sqm of infrastructure
dedicated to education,
research and innovation
● 1,000 researchers
● 1,000 students
EMC2 cluster
The competitive cluster
dedicated to setting up
innovative projects
for six industries: aerospace,
naval/offshore, ground
transportation, energy, sailing,
industrial capital goods – at
the local level, with a focus on
advanced manufacturing
technologies as a shared
cross-disciplinary feature.
Industry of the future:
how to improve the production
process of tomorrow's plants
4 PLATFORMS
● Technocampus Ocean: Metallic
parts/structures manufacturing
● Technocampus Smart Factory: Local
virtual reality equipment
to serve all the industrial companies in
the region.
● Technocampus Composites
● Technocampus Acoustic: NDTs -
Monitoring
> 315 members
> 360 accredited projects
> Overall budget
of 1.7 B € for R&D
Clusters of excellence: Manufacturing
The Jules Verne Manufacturing Valley

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Clusters of excellence:
Shipbuilding and leisure boatbuilding
Designing the ship of the future : Ecodesign
Comprehensive inter-industry discussion
Maritime cluster positioning
 Facilitating emergence of R&D projects to pave the way for designing the ship of the future
 Constructing a coherent and competitive shipbuilding industry
 Supporting shipbuilding stakeholders in new markets
 Promoting the eco-friendly leisure boat

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Shipbuilding of the future
In 2013, the French Government launched a 3.5 billion€ “New Industrial France” program,
designed to sponsor 34 large-scale projects. It brought together large French companies,
foreign researchers and startups in various fields such as nanotechnology, robotics, self-
propelled vehicles, cloud -computing , etc.
Among these 34 large scale projects was the building of “the ship of the
future”, so as to build a France of fuel-efficient and environmentally
friendly ships. The main actors were STX and DCNS.
Today, the building of the ship of the future is part of one of the 10
“Industries of the Future” that the French Government wants to promote:
“Tomorrow’s transport“, more environmentally friendly and competitive
means of transportation.
Planned environmentally friendly ship, STX France

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Shipbuilding of the future
STX France SA is a large shipbuilding group majority
owned (66.6%) by STX Europe (a subsidiary of the Korean
group STX Offshore and Shipbuilding), with a minority
stake (33.4%) held by the French government.
Opportunities for Finnish companies
Opportunities in special projects and renewable marine energy but not
in hull design.
About 30 Finnish companies are already working for STX in the
construction of Oasis of the Seas III, with contracts totaling €120
million.
It still requires more shipbuilding specialists to reduce costs by finding
new ways to build ships
Source: FINPRO
www.stxeurope.com

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Leaders in shipbuilding
www.dcnsgroup.com
– Designs, builds and maintains submarines and surface ships.
– Provides a full range of services to naval bases and shipyards.
– Services in engineering, construction, installation, maintenance and
overall prime contracting of marine renewable energies.
– Development of MRE technologies and has already formed strategic
partnerships to develop pilot projects in France and abroad.
– Annual revenues of € 3.1 billion and employs 13,130 people.
DCNS is a world leader in naval defense and a global player in
marine renewable energies.

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Leaders in ship repair
and maintenance www.eiffel-industrie.com
Its competences include:
– studies for the integration and assembly of machinery on new ships,
– complete ship fitting at dockside or in dry dock, scheduled maintenance
work and breakdown repairs,
– ship refitting, conversion and integration of new equipment,
– expertise and repairs on board and at sea in France and abroad.
EIFFEL Industrie has been building its position as a leader in the
industrial services sector for more than 75 years.

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Subcontractors
and equipment suppliers www.hydrocean.fr
– Increases performance and reduces design risks in vessels
and marine structures.
– Services provided worldwide through a partnership with
Bureau Veritas (On September 8th, 2015 HydrOcean was
acquired by Bureau Veritas)
– Distributor of the software, developed in partnership with
the École Centrale Nantes.
HydrOcean is a world leader in marine computational fluid dynamics. Through a complete
digital towing tank, HydrOcean provides hydro and aerodynamic performance evaluation
and optimization services for the marine, offshore, renewable energy and sailing industries.

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Subcontractors
and equipment suppliers
www.neopolia-marine.com
– Offers a synergy of all skills, thanks to the expertise of
specialists
– Overall management of technical and financial projects.
– The cluster relies on the services of a specialized technical
and commercial engineer, who works closely with
customers in their projects and thereby promotes the
development of the member companies.
Neopolia Marine is a cluster of 40 companies from the Pays de la Loire region, specialising
in shipbuilding and ship repair (aluminium and steel) for commercial development and
improvement of performances.

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Axel Berggren Lagercrantz
Business France Invest
Sweden (Stockholm), Finland & Estonia
Tel. : + 46(0) 845 95 399
Mobile : +46 708 40 76 94
E-mail : axel.berggren-lagercrantz@businessfrance.fr
www.businessfrance.fr
Thank you for your attention!