319. Deputy John Deasy asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the number of applications for the high potential start-up feasibility study grant that have been approved by county to date. [20973/18]

HPSUs are companies which have the potential to develop an innovative product or service suitable for export, and which have the potential to create 10 jobs and €1m in sales within 3 to 4 years of establishment. In 2017 Enterprise Ireland supported 90 HPSUs with an equity investment.

Enterprise Ireland’s HPSU Team works with start-up companies to ensure that they can avail of suitable supports to enable them to realise their potential. One of the financial supports that is available to companies is the HPSU Feasibility Grant.

The HPSU Feasibility Grant assists a new start-up company or individual entrepreneur to examine the viability of a new export oriented business or proposition. The objective of the study is to provide the necessary information to enable the promoter to reach firm conclusions regarding the project's viability, and set out investor ready plans associated with developing and commercialising the product or service.

Table 1 presents the number of Enterprise Ireland clients who have received payment under the HPSU Feasibility Grant scheme, segregated by county.

Table 1: Number of Enterprise Ireland clients who have received payment under the HPSU Feasibility Grant scheme, segregated by county.

* In order to protect client confidentiality, exact numbers are not released for counties that have less than five approvals.