OWAC International a Project financed with EU grants - PO FESR Sicily 2014-2020

The project, financed with € 80,000, resulting from the Director General Decree 1998 dated 13 November 2018, makes use of the EU incentive for the purchase of internationalisation support services. The aim is to enter the foreign market to obtain greater visibility and easier access to activities that allow the company to develop on a larger scale.
 
Thanks to this, OWAC has increased and developed its business, increased its competitiveness and attractiveness, and diversified its target market, through contacts made during trade fairs, meetings with local and non-local stakeholders and/or partners, and the use of external consultancy services for the support during all phases, including legal and contractual assistance, to facilitate agreements with the various parties involved.
 
After careful research, the company has started to collaborate with the Asian market, specifically China, within the framework of “waste to energy” and environmental remediation.
 
The choice of the target country is supported by research results which evidence that the Chinese government is working to meet the commitments agreed in Copenhagen and Paris, regarding the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030. With this purpose, the Chinese policy framework has revised its ‘investment’ plans, which were largely focused on the hydroelectric sector and the exploitation of geothermal energy sources, and now dedicates greater attention to environmental policies.
 
In this sense, OWAC proposes itself as a supplier of solutions to various environmental problems, which translate to the improvement of quality of life and health. Thanks to its expertise and experience, built over the years, specifically in “waste to energy”, the design of waste treatment plants, and environmental remediation, the company looks to fill the gap present in the Chinese territory related to environmental concerns.
 
The expected goals have directed the company to carry out the following activities:
 

1. Participation in trade fairs / sector events that have concrete potential for a functional approach to the Asian market. In this regard, between 2019 and 2021 OWAC participated in the following international trade fairs held in China
   • ECOMONDO – (CDEPE) 2019, Chengdu
   • IE EXPO 2019, Shanghai
   • CIEPEC 2019, Beijing
   • IE EXPO 2019, Chengdu
   • IE EXPO 2019, Guangzhou
   • IE EXPO 2020, Shanghai
   • IE EXPO 2021, Shanghai
2. Involvement of a Temporary Export Manager (TEM) for the management and coordination of the internationalization project;
3. Legal and contractual assistance aimed at providing preparatory support for the signing of agreements with foreign operators;
4. Strategic and commercial consultancy aimed at overseeing new markets;
5. Advertising tools (Brochures, catalogs, information material in Chinese, social networks).

 
The project, of the Regional Internationalization Program – PRINT Sicily, enabled the company to achieve the following results:
 

1. Creation of a sales network, through the recruitment and training of local subjects, to ease communication and favor integration into the Asian market;
2. Implementation of contacts with potential Chinese partners, both in the private and in the public sector;
3. Greater visibility and knowledge of the company and the services it provides by stakeholders interested in environmental issues and innovative solutions, with particular reference to the treatment of waste and problems associated with the recovery of contaminated sites;
4. Enforcement of agreements with private entities, local universities, and cooperation bodies for environmental sustainability.