The UDC, in cooperation with the department, may provide working capital loans to encourage the introduction of new production processes, the expansion or diversification of product lines or expansion into new markets by qualified industrial firms with non-competitive product lines or outmoded production operations. For new production process and product expansion or diversification, loans shall be available for commercial development of a process or product line which has advanced beyond the research and development stage and is readily capable of being, or has been, reduced to practice.