France ahoy!

Maritime Business DayFeb. 10th 2016 Helsinki

Axel Berggren Lagercrantz, Senior Investment Advisor, Business France

Contents

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I/ Who we are, what we doQuick presentation of Business France

II/ France’s pro-business reform agendaFrance’s ongoing main reforms to ease business in France.

III/ Getting support in FranceGovernmental and financial aid.

IV/ The Pays-de-la-Loire regionStrengths and opportunities

Launching of the liner ”Le France” at Saint Nazaire, 1960Credits : 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

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

Introduction

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Key facts about Business France in the Nordic countries:

• 40 people working in 4 offices : 4 Tradeteams 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

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 administrationThe ”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 administrationThe ”Simplification Shock”

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III/ Getting support in

France

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 ofspecific 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 jobcreated ( 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 industryLand 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 workforceWorld 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: ManufacturingThe 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 majorityowned (66.6%) by STX Europe (a subsidiary of the Koreangroup STX Offshore and Shipbuilding), with a minoritystake (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 supplierswww.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 supplierswww.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, specialisingin 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!