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Green Economy, Lombardy supremacy in renewable energies

With a quote of 17, 4% Lombardy Region, followed by Trentino at 14,6% has the national primacy of energy produced with renewable sources in 2009. Even in terms of power Lombardy has another record: 20,9%. Trentino Alto Adige follows with 12,1%.

At light of these data, during the conference “Green Economy and Corporate Social Responsibility” at the Round Table opened by the Nobel Prizewinner Al Gore On, Marcello Raimondi Assessor of Environment, Energy and Nets of the Lombardy Region said that:” These data confirm that something is really changing, better the Culture is changing and we are seeing a renaissance of the environmental culture”. This explains why the Lombardy has passed Trentino that has fiscal benefit and higher number of PV panels installed. For sure the resources that Lombardy has placed are helping the change of the mentality needed for having a Green Revolution.

For more information regarding public incentives in Italy for renewable energies visit: www.piemontefotovoltaico.it/index.php?id=6&idf=15

Israel offers incentives to launch financial R D Centers

In order to encurage large financial services companies and international banks to set up financial R&D centers in Israel, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor may pay as much as 50 percent of the workers' wage at the financial R&D centers for up to 5 year.

To read the entire notice, please visit Invest in Israel website: www.investinisrael.gov.il

We here report the article published by Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2010 on the 23 of June 2010 -

Medical center in Italy to set up Brainsway clinic

The Deep TMS Center in Milan will open in July, and will be the first of its kind.

23 June 10 11:45, Globes' correspondent

Brainsway Ltd's (TASE:BRIN) Italian distributor Advanced Technologies Innovation Distribution srl (ATID) has signed an agreement with a medical center in the Milan area to set up a specialized clinic, the Deep TMS Center. The center will have several of Brainsway's transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) devices for the non-invasive treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders.

Some of the treatments at the new center will be part of clinical trials. The Deep TMS Center will open in July, and will be the first of its kind.

Brainsway signed a distribution agreement with ATID last year, and received its first order in October.

Brainsway's share price rose 2% in morning trading to NIS 9.28, giving a market cap of NIS 389 million.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 23, 2010

Solar Thermal Markets in Europe - data about Italy

European Solar Thermal Industry Federation has published recently a study about the European Solar Thermal Markets. It includes trends and statistical data about those markets that achive a capacity between 200,000 sqm and 400,000 sqm like Italy, Spain Austria, France and Greece, and those that have a smaller capacity below 200,00 sqm like Portugal, Switzerland, Poland, United Kingdom, Denmark. According to the report, Germany still has a leader position in Europe in the Solar Thermal Market, even though here "the impact of the crisis was felt more sharply".

About the Italian market:

"Italy is now the second largest market in Europe, and much more stable that other emerging European markets. Compared with 2008, the Italian market has decreased by 5% in 2009, with 280MWth of newly installed capacity (400,000 sqm of solar thermal collectors). Due to its geographical location and to its high-energy dependency (86,8% in Italy compared with a European average of 53,8%) this market still represents a very strong potential for solar thermal. The major growth in recent years can be credited to a 55% tax rebate covering various energy efficiency measures in existing buildings, including solar thermal installations. These provisions will remain in place until the end of 2010 and the expert predict a steady performance for this year. In the event that this measures is not maintained in the next years, this emerging and important market could face though an important slow down."

To see the entire documents and trends&Statistics about other EU countries click here

SME performance review - fact sheet from Italy

In Italy, SMEs count for a percentage (99.9%) close to the EU average (99.8%); however they are represented here more than elesewhere by the micro-enterprises, which count for 94.6% of the total. The contribution of the Italian SMEs to level of employment is much higher (47%) than the European average (30%) and the contribution of the entire Italian SMEs sector is significantly higher ( 81%) in respect to the European average (67%).
In terms of added value, SMEs contribute (71.7%) more than the EU average (58%). However the historical timeframe 2002 - 2009 indicates that the number of SMEs grew less (-7%) in respect to the EU average and the percentage of new jobs created is 3% less than that of EU.

Click here to see the entire document.

The measures recently approved by the Italian Council of Ministries to reduce the deficit

From the Bank of Italy Governor's Concluding Remarks at the Ordinary Meeting of Shareholders in Rome - 31 May 2010

" At the beginning of this year it was estimated that the Italian economy would return to the, albeit modest, growth of the ten years preceding the crisis. In the first quarter GDP grew by 0,5 per cent compared with the previous quarter; there was an improvement in the opinions of firms, especially exporters, regarding the performance of orders and their expectations for production. Destocking appeared to have come to an end.

The explosion of the Greek crisis could change the outlook. Some European governments have taken action to reduce their budget deficits.

The Italian Government has reaffirmed the objective of bringing the deficit below the threshold of 3 per cent of GDP by 2012, confirmed the committment to achieving budgetary balance over a longer time horizon, and brought forward the formulation of the adjustment measures for 2011-12. According to the official estimanes the measures recently approved by the Council of Ministries will reduce the baseline budget deficit in 2012 by €24.9 operating costs of the public administration. The package is intended to slow the annual growth in primary current expenditure to below 1 per cent in 2011 and 2012, thereby reducing its ratio to GDP by more than 2 perecentage points. Over the last ten years expenditure expanded at an average annual rate of 4.6 per cent and rose by nearly 6 percentage points in relation to GDP. Careful monitoring of the effects of the package will therefore be needed to ensure the objectives are achieved."

See the entire documents at: http://www.bancaditalia.it/interventi/integov/2010/cf_09/encf_09/en_cf_2009.pdf