Equinix opens a new data center in Barcelona with a total investment of 52 million euros.

Equinix, global leader in digital infrastructure, has opened its first data center in Barcelona, with an investment of 52 million euros. The new center, called BCN1, has been built with the aim of promoting connectivity and digital services in the region, consolidating Barcelona as one of the most important technological hubs in southern Europe.

This data center offers placement, interconnection and connectivity services for local and international companies, especially in the telecommunications, finance, e-commerce and health sectors. The aim is to facilitate the expansion of companies into new global markets thanks to a secure and efficient infrastructure.

Barcelona has been chosen for its strategic position between Europe, Africa and Latin America, as well as for its growing technological ecosystem. According to Charles Meyers, CEO of Equinix, “Barcelona is a key center for digital transformation in Europe, and this center will help boost the digital growth of the region.”

One of the strengths of BCN1 is its commitment to sustainability. The centre uses advanced technologies to minimize energy consumption, with the aim of reducing the carbon footprint and making operations 100% neutral in emissions in the near future.

The construction of this data center has had a positive impact on the local economy, generating numerous jobs. Equinix hopes that BCN1 will become an essential pillar for the digital development of Catalan companies, supporting both large corporations and SMEs that need high-level connectivity services.

With the inauguration of BCN1, Barcelona reinforces its position as a hub of technological attraction, attracting new investments and companies that want to take advantage of digital infrastructures and the innovative environment of the city. This investment by Equinix is added to other technological projects that place Barcelona as a benchmark in the global connectivity map.

BBVA promotes the largest real estate rehabilitation in Catalonia

BBVA has launched an ambitious housing rehabilitation project in Catalonia, financed with Next Generation funds from the European Union. This project, which is considered the largest of its kind in the region, will be carried out in four buildings located in the municipality of Vic, Barcelona.

According to the Catalan Habitat Agency, the energy efficiency of buildings will increase between 62.89% and 63.57%. This rehabilitation covers a total of 114 homes, 35 commercial premises, 230 parking spaces and 140 storage rooms.

In financial terms, the project requires a total investment of 7 million euros, of which 2.6 million euros will be subsidized.

Work is scheduled to span approximately 15 months, with a completion date of July 2025.

The BBVA project not only responds to the need to modernize the real estate stock, but is also aligned with the recent European regulations on energy efficiency, a regulation that seeks to reduce emissions of polluting gases and energy consumption in residential buildings.

Under the new guidelines, by 2030, all new construction buildings must be zero-emission, and by 2050, complete decarbonization must be achieved in both new construction and existing buildings.

In Spain, the challenge is particularly relevant because almost half of the homes were built before 1980. According to data from the INE, 81% of buildings have a low energy rating, between categories E and G. This context highlights the importance of initiatives such as BBVA’s, which play a crucial role in improving energy efficiency and promoting more sustainable practices in the country’s real estate sector.

Àtic Coworking acquires space in 22@ for coworking and events

Àtic Coworking Business Center has reinforced its presence in the 22@ technological district of Barcelona with the acquisition of a 2,500 square meter warehouse on Calle Llull. This new acquisition increases its portfolio to 17,700 square meters dedicated to coworking and events.

The new facility has been designed to accommodate a wide range of events, from conferences and exhibitions to filming and immersive experiences. Its advanced infrastructure and flexible design will allow Àtic Group to offer creative and personalized solutions.

This move is part of the company’s expansion strategy, which, directed by Vanesa Vaquerizo and Jordi Verdejo, seeks to consolidate its commitment to innovation.

Apart from the new warehouse in Poblenou, Àtic Group currently manages four event spaces and five coworking spaces. Looking ahead to 2025, the company plans to expand to other Spanish cities such as Bilbao, Madrid and Palma de Mallorca.

Barcelona, ​​the new home of Bespoke Pixel

A new video game studio, called Bespoke Pixel, has been founded in Barcelona by a visionary group of European video game entrepreneurs. Led by David Polfeldt, former director of Massive Entertainment of the Ubisoft group, this studio will focus on the development of AAA video games for PC and consoles, with an investment of 25 million euros. Its establishment in the city has been supported by the Government through ACCIÓ -Catalunya Export & Investment and the Barcelona City Council through Barcelona Activa.

Bespoke Pixel has chosen Barcelona as its headquarters to lead and develop its online experiences. David Polfeldt explains that they seek to create original and well-designed projects, with a singular approach, and have an agile and expert team dedicated to the development of prototypes.

The founding team of Bespoke Pixel selected Barcelona among fifteen European options, highlighting the talent concentrated in the city and its promising future as a cultural center and leader in the video game industry.

David Polfeldt, with a distinguished career in the industry, has been an influential figure in Sweden and Europe. For 17 years, he led the Ubisoft group’s Massive Entertainment studio, producing acclaimed titles such as “World in Conflict,” “Assassin’s Creed” and “Far Cry.”

The video game industry in Catalonia is experiencing unprecedented growth, consolidating itself as one of the main economic drivers of the region. According to data from the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Catalonia leads the national panorama by representing 52% of turnover and concentrating 48% of employment in the sector in Spain.

Kronos inaugurates Parc Central, the 127 million residential development in Barcelona

Kronos has undertaken the development of Parc Central, an innovative and ecological neighborhood in Sant Pere de Ribes, Barcelona, ​​with a total investment of 127 million euros. This residential project, which will encompass more than 500 homes, represents a significant milestone in Kronos Real Estate Group’s (KREG) vision of creating urban communities of the future.

Within this initiative, 228 homes are included for sale through the Hudson residential complex by Kronos Homes, and another 302 for rent through Stay by Kronos.

The opening ceremony was attended by prominent figures in the sector, such as Rui Meneses Ferreira, CEO of Kronos Homes, and Alberto García-Gasco, investment manager of Nuveen Real Estate, among others. Saïd Hejal, CEO of Kronos Real Estate Group, expressed his vision of Parc Central as a space that integrates sustainable architecture and green areas to enrich the urban environment and the quality of life of its residents.

Hudson by Kronos Homes, the housing project for sale, has been designed by the Binarq architects studio with the aim of maximizing the connection with the natural environment of Sant Pere de Ribes.

On the other hand, Stay by Kronos offers an innovative rental concept with premium services that promote the community and well-being of its inhabitants. Both projects stand out for their commitment to sustainability, reflected in energy efficiency, sustainable construction and obtaining high-quality environmental certifications. With Parc Central, Kronos consolidates its presence in Catalonia and reaffirms its commitment to responsible and sustainable urban development.

Catalonia allocates 250 million euros to promote social rental housing

The Official Gazette of the Generalitat of Catalonia (DOGC) has recently published a call for financing of 250 million euros aimed at promoting the construction of social rental housing.

This initiative, led by the Housing Agency of Catalonia (AHC) and the Institut Català de Finances (ICF), offers subsidized loans to public and private developers who already have public subsidies for the construction of officially protected housing.

The objective is to cover the part of the cost of housing not included in the subsidies. This drive seeks to increase the stock of social and affordable housing in Catalonia, guaranteeing the right to housing for all citizens.

Beneficiaries of this loan line may request a minimum credit of 250,000 euros with an initial interest of 3.65%, amortizable over a maximum of 30 years. The AHC will subsidize 0.70% of the interest, thus reducing it to 2.95%. This new call for financing represents double that announced a year ago, which has made it possible to promote 397 social housing units in Catalonia so far.

Wolf Group in Gavà with an investment of 12 million euros

Wolf Group, a leading European manufacturer of chemical products, inaugurated its state-of-the-art factory in Gavà backed by ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment, with an investment of 12 million euros, generating 50 new jobs. 

The high-tech facility, which will initially produce more than 70 foam combinations, aims to exceed 5 million units in the first year. With planned exports to more than 70 countries, Wolf Group strengthens its global presence, operating 5 factories worldwide and employing more than 400 people.

The CEO highlighted the innovation and described it as bold for the construction sector. On the other hand, founder Jaan Puusaag highlighted the company’s contribution to regional development. CEO Tohver anticipated an increase in market share and sales of polyurethane foams across Europe.

Green light for the Biopol PDU that will regenerate 96 hectares with an investment of 230 million

The Urban Development Master Plan (PDU) Biopol-Granvia of L’Hospitalet de Llobregat has been definitively approved by the Urban Planning Commission of the Government of Catalonia after years of procedures and legal disputes. This ambitious urban and economic project covers 8% of the city’s territory, with an estimated investment of 230 million euros.

The main objective of the PDU is to create a new center of economic activity focused on biomedical research and health sciences, with the construction of more than 556,000 square meters of space for economic activities. The project includes changes such as the undergrounding of the Granvia de L’Hospitalet and improvements to access to the Llobregat River, as well as the rehabilitation of historic buildings.

Biopol, a hub of companies related to biomedicine, will be the core of this development, with the participation of institutions such as the Bellvitge Hospital and the University of Barcelona. It is expected that this biomedical cluster will have a significant impact on the labor market and the Catalan economy.

Although it has received political support, some local entities have expressed environmental concerns and have initiated legal actions to stop the project. However, it is expected that the PDU will come into force once it is published in the Official Gazette of the Government of Catalonia (DOGC).

WTC Barcelona will renew the 48,000 m2 business centre in the port of Barcelona

Savills will lead the transformation of WTC Barcelona, a significant business center in the city’s port. Their work will encompass asset and technical management, along with providing marketing advice, aiming to enhance the spaces for the operating businesses.

The WTC Barcelona complex, which includes offices, a luxury hotel, commercial and dining areas, as well as event facilities and parking, hosts multinational companies like the Port of Barcelona and Accord Healthcare.

Anna Gener, CEO of Savills Barcelona, emphasizes the importance of this renovation in revitalizing life in the port, highlighting the city’s crucial role in the Blue Economy.

On another note, Elian Barcelona, a part of Viserion, has acquired a plant in the Port of Barcelona, marking the beginning of a new phase of expansion in their supply chain.

Additionally, Euroindoor has sold a covered paddle tennis facility in Alcorcón, while the French firm Alderan Société de Gestion Immobilière has invested in unique industrial and logistics projects.

Finally, the German asset manager DWS has acquired three photovoltaic plants in Badajoz, with a total capacity of 147 MW, to supply energy to 91,800 households per year.

Territory allocates 2.4 MEUR to the rehabilitation and adaptation of homes in small municipalities

The Department of Territory will allocate 2.4 million euros to promote rehabilitation and adaptation works of housing in small municipalities, encouraging population settlement in rural areas.

Through the Arraigo program, works have been tendered to adapt municipal buildings in Bovera, Granadella, Juncosa, and el Soleràs to accommodate up to ten housing units, with an investment of 472,000 euros. Simultaneously, the guidelines for new rehabilitation grants from the Rural Housing Program have been published, with a budget of 2 million euros.

This initiative by the Catalonia Housing Agency aims to improve the condition of housing stock in rural municipalities across Catalonia, with special attention to those with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants and mountain areas.

Applications for these grants can be submitted from April 15 to June 28.

Catalonia attracts foreign investments worth 880 million euros in 2023

The Minister of Business and Labor of Catalonia, Roger Torrent, announced in a press conference that the Catalan Government, through ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment, attracted 880 million euros in foreign investment in 2023 and 2,955 million euros in the last five years. This achievement marks a 42% increase over the previous year and is the highest figure recorded since 1985.

The Annual Report of Catalonia Trade & Investment reveals that during 2023, 112 projects by foreign companies were formalized, with the creation of 4,533 jobs, 31% more than in 2022. Of the 112 projects, 42% were greenfield investments.

Regarding greenfield investments, Albert Castellanos pointed out that “We are immersed in the transformation of the production model and diversification of investments,” emphasizing the attraction of companies that contribute to the green and digital transformation of companies.

On the other hand, the Minister highlighted that “These record figures demonstrate the competitiveness of Catalonia in the business world and the confidence of international investors in our country” and stressed that “These figures help us position ourselves internationally and accompany the economic and business transformations from the country”.

If we talk about the distribution based on its nature, in 2023, 67% of foreign investment was of an industrial nature, 26% in technology sectors, 14% in life sciences, 12% in automotive, 11% in video games and 10% in food. This diversification is also reflected in the origin of the investments, coming from more than 30 countries, led by the US (21%), France (13%) and the United Kingdom (9%).

Currently, Catalonia has almost 600 projects in development, and close to 50% of the companies that invested in Catalonia in 2023 plan to reinvest in the future, demonstrating the solid prospect of economic growth in the region.

Mountpark expands its presence in Spain by acquiring land for the construction of a logistics center

The American logistics developer Mountpark has landed in the Catalan market by acquiring a 92,000 square meter plot in El Pla de Santa Maria, Tarragona. Its plan includes the construction of a 56,000-square-meter building with 56 loading docks, designed for eventual division into two independent structures.

The strategic location of the plot, near the Barcelona, Zaragoza, Madrid axis and less than a kilometer from the AP2 motorway, ensures optimal connectivity with the regional transport network. In addition, it is 36 km from Tarragona, a city that is part of the Mediterranean Corridor.

On the other hand, according to CBRE, the investment prospects in the logistics sector for 2024 project an increase of 10% compared to 2023. Factors such as the typology of the warehouse, its location, technology and sustainability influence the demand for logistics assets in Spain, as highlighted at the CBRE Trends in Industrial and Logistics event.

Mountpark, through its joint venture with Affinius Capital, aims to develop cutting-edge logistics buildings in Europe, with a particular focus on the United Kingdom and Western and Central Europe. With this project in Tarragona, it will add 245,000 square meters of development in Spain, in addition to its operations in Illescas (Toledo).

Talus Real Estate consolidates its presence in Catalan logistics with an acquisition of 47,000 square meters

Talus Real Estate has taken a significant step by securing a strategic plot of more than 47,000 square meters in the Catalan Metropolitan Region, thus consolidating its position in the logistics sector. Located at the crossroads of the A-2 and the AP-7, this location further reinforces its presence in the region’s first logistics ring.

This acquisition marks a milestone for Talus by driving the development of a 17,000 square meter logistics warehouse, equipped with 20 truck docks, ESFR sprinkler systems and BREEAM Excellent and Net Zero Carbon Emissions certifications. In addition, the facility will have solar panels for self-consumption, LED lighting, parking areas for more than 176 vehicles, as well as charging spaces and patios designed for electric vehicles.

Construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2024, at which time the asset will be available for lease. Angel Ovejas, Head of Asset Management at Talus, emphasized the company’s continued commitment to the expansion and consolidation of its presence in the real estate market.

Barcelona debates the expansion of El Prat airport

Aena plans to build a hotel at El Prat airport as part of a strategic plan to promote hotel establishments near airports in five Spanish cities, including Barcelona.

The consulting firm Catella, specialized in real estate investments, has been advising Aena since January and anticipates that real estate projects could begin within three years. Currently, Catella is focused on analyzing the tourism sector and business travel in Barcelona, as well as hotel trends and needs near the airport.

The award of the project, for which five large national real estate companies competed, was carried out for an amount of 1.52 million euros. This news comes amid debates about the expansion of Barcelona airport, with proposals to extend one of the runways.

Catalan employers and businessmen agree on the need to expand El Prat, arguing that its capacity was at its limit before the pandemic, and that the lack of expansion could affect the competitiveness of the city in terms of attracting foreign investment compared to other European capitals, like Madrid.

Freudenberg invests 11 million euros in Catalonia to modernize automotive production

The German industrial group Freudenberg has renewed its commitment to Catalonia through an investment of 11 million euros to modernize its automotive components factory in Parets del Vallès, Barcelona.

The new facility, recently inaugurated, operates with renewable energy and cutting-edge technology, including artificial intelligence. With 6,800 square meters and 171 employees, it specializes in shock absorber seals and steering components.

The modernization will increase production by 15%, generating about 30 million euros annually. The project received 200,000 euros of aid from the Government through ACCIÓ. The president of the Generalitat, Pere Aragonès, and the Minister of Business, Roger Torrent, attended the inauguration.

Based in Baden Wurttemberg, the family-owned company had a global turnover of 11,753 million euros in 2022, operating in 60 countries with more than 51,000 employees. Apart from the automotive industry, Freudenberg owns the Vileda brand and is present in lubricants, chemicals and medical devices. Its Spanish subsidiary had a turnover of 342 million in 2022 through various subsidiaries.

Neinor Homes and Orion Capital strengthen their presence in Barcelona with the acquisition of residential land

Neinor Homes and the Orion Capital Managers fund have strengthened their presence in the Barcelona real estate market through the acquisition of residential land in the municipalities of Sant Cugat del Vallés and Rubí. The transaction, valued at approximately 12 million euros and facilitated by aCapital of the aFinance Group, involves plots with a total area of 17,674 square meters and a projected buildable area of 23,000 square meters on the ground floor plus two floors in height.

 

This strategic agreement marks a significant step forward in the expansion of Neinor Homes and Orion Capital Managers, who plan to develop a residential project on the site. Consisting of 104 semi-detached single-family homes, the project will be divided into four phases, offering various residential options. Furthermore, the context of the real estate market in Sant Cugat del Vallés stands out, where the average price of housing reaches 3,664 euros per square meter, with a year-on-year growth of 2.8%, according to data from Brainsre.

 

In this context, the new construction sector experiences a higher price, standing at 4,797 euros per square meter, with a year-on-year increase of 2.2%, although it has experienced a decrease of 2.4% in the last three months. This strategic move reinforces the position of Neinor Homes and Orion Capital Managers in the dynamic real estate market in the region.

MMM Group opens a hydrogen generator factory in Molins de Rei (Barcelona)

At the inaugural event, which was attended by the Minister of Business and Work of the Generalitat of Catalonia, Roger Torrent, and the Councilor for Business and Technologies 4.0 of the Molins de Rei City Council, Joan Carles Serra, it was highlighted that the plant plans have 100 employees by 2024 and produce 450 reformers annually.

Torrent affirmed the Generalitat’s commitment to the development of green hydrogen projects, underlining its crucial role in the decarbonization of heavy transport and industry. He highlighted that the MMM initiative is aligned with the Government’s objectives, focused on strengthening the innovative ecosystem of green hydrogen, offering productive solutions to the green mobility industry, generating stable and quality employment, and energizing the local economy.

Jordi Priu, CEO of MMM Group, highlighted that the project was born with synergies within the group, representing a commitment to innovation, excellence and sustainable growth.

The Danish startup Monta will install its second headquarters in Barcelona

Monta presents a comprehensive platform for recharging electric vehicles, simplifying the deployment, use, and management of charging infrastructure. The choice to install its ‘hub’ in Europe seems to be obvious, since Barcelona is one of the reference places for technology in Europe.

The Catalan capital becomes the company’s second largest center in Europe, only behind its headquarters in Denmark, and its vehicle charging solution will now be present in more than twenty European countries with more than 130,000 charging points. commercial.

The Port of Barcelona has started the bidding process for the Nexigen project

The Port has started the bidding process to build an electrical substation with which to electrify all cruise ship berthing points, the Prat dock and the ferry terminals of the Sant Bertran dock and the Costa dock.

Allowing ships to turn off their auxiliary engines, reducing environmental and noise pollution. It is estimated that by 2030, 66,000 tons of CO₂ and 1,234 tons of NOx will be eliminated from emissions from port activity.

The work, part of the Nexigen project and whose budget uses 14 million euros of the 110 million allocated, is expected to be completed in 2025.

Catalunya Trade & Investment has supported 26,000 internationalisation projects of Catalan companies over the last 35 years.

Mr. Pere Aragonès, the current president of the Generalitat, announced last Tuesday that ACCIÓ has supported more than 26,000 projects over the last 35 years.

Today, it is the government’s main tool for promoting economic growth abroad. The first offices in international territory were opened in 1988, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, Milan, and New York being the selected cities.

The global network of Trade and Investment Offices is an essential resource for promoting the internationalization of companies in Catalonia. In fact, since 1995, when the historical series began, Catalan exports have experienced a remarkable increase of 5.3 times, reaching a total of 94,926.7 million euros in 2022. This increase exceeds the average growth of exports worldwide, which recorded an increase of 4.8% during the same period.

The Chinese multinational WANHUA will open an innovation centre in Catalonia.

The current Minister of Enterprise and Employment, Roger Torrent, has announced from Yantai (China) the successful operation of the Chinese multinational company WANHUA in Catalonia.

WANHUA is currently one of the largest chemical companies in the world, with more than 27,000 employees worldwide, and until now it has only been present in Hungary and the Czech Republic.

According to Roger Torrent, this is the company’s first investment in Southern Europe and it has chosen Catalonia as the location to develop this major project.

The large project is planned to be established in Cornellà (Barcelona) at the end of 2023. The main objective of this center is to support the company’s business development in Europe.

In the last five years, foreign investment from China to Catalonia has reached 1,164 million euros, which has been transformed into 2,100 new jobs and 114 subsidiaries of Chinese companies in Catalonia.

Barcelona establishes itself as the second main option for startups in the European Union

According to the 2023 Startup Heatmap Europe report, Barcelona continues to stand out as the preferred choice for entrepreneurs to launch their projects, maintaining this privileged position for the sixth consecutive year. In this prestigious study, the Catalan city surpasses cities such as Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin and Lisbon, with 17.1% of entrepreneurs considering it the most attractive location to start a startup.

Albert Castellanos, Secretary of Business and Competitiveness of the Generalitat of Catalonia and general director of ACCIÓ (Agency for Business Competitiveness), emphasizes the fundamental role that Barcelona plays in the European startup ecosystem. He highlights that the city continues to attract top tech talent and highlights how startups contribute significantly to attracting foreign investment, driving innovation and technology in the region.

Since 2016, the Startup Heatmap Europe report has evaluated the preferences of startup founders to identify the 50 best European cities to start a business. Barcelona has maintained a consistent position among the top options, reflecting its enduring appeal to entrepreneurs. The startup ecosystem in Catalonia is experiencing notable growth, according to the report “Analysis of the startup ecosystem in Catalonia 2022” by ACCIÓ-Catalunya. The region is home to more than 2,000 startups that have generated more than 19,100 jobs and have attracted investments worth 1,653 million euros in 2022, which represents an increase of 6.3% compared to 2021 and an impressive increase of 86 % since 2016.

Key sectors for Catalan startups include health (16%), business services and software (12%), ICT and mobile telephony (6%), food (5%) and finance (5%). The report also highlights the growth and evolution in the size of these companies, reflecting their growing prominence in the startup landscape.

The continued success of Barcelona and Catalonia as a startup epicenter highlights their firm commitment to innovation and entrepreneurship.

The “good rhythm” of the Catalan economy: resilience, return of tourism and more exports.

The Catalan economy has closed 2022 with a “good rhythm” and a growth of the gross domestic product (GDP) of 5.5% thanks to the resilience of the Catalan economy. Catalonia, to face the increase in prices and the energy crisis, has relied on three fundamental pillars: the resilience of household consumption, the recovery of foreign tourism and the increase in exports of goods.

To define 2022, we should look at five global shocks, of which the cost of financing and core inflation levels are the only ones that have not improved. For Carme Poveda, director of the Economic Memory of Catalonia, they are the following:

  • The spread of the omicron variant of covid-19
  • Supply chain problems
  • Rising energy prices
  • Core inflation
  • The cost of financing

It should also be noted that an important point has been the attraction of foreign investment in industry and in the ICT sector, which represents 52%. On the other hand, we also find considerable changes in the occupational structure, for example, with the increase in workers in the public sector, although the loss of purchasing power of wages in Catalonia in 2022 was 5.5%.

One of the priorities of the Catalan economy at present is the importance of increasing R&D on a European scale, since the European average exceeds 2% while here we remain at 1.64%, a figure that could become the Historic opportunity to lead digital and sustainable transformation with the support of Next Generation funds. Another of the priorities still pending is the volume of public debt, which remains at very high rates.

For 2023, a good evolution is expected in the first semester with tourism, employment, the moderation of inflation and European funds. A slowdown is also expected at the end of the year with the impact of interest rates and weakness in Europe, but we can conclude that what will determine economic growth in the coming years will be monetary policy.

Olvan prepares for economic growth with the opening of the new sector driven by INCASÒL

The Institut Català del Sòl, INCASÒL, starts the commercialisation of the economic activity sector of Rocarodona-Olvan, located in the municipality of Olvan (Berguedà).

A total of 14 plots are for sale, for different uses, mainly industrial, commercial and offices. The plots have different surface areas and range from 13,000 m2, the largest, to 1,800 m2, the smallest. A total of 5 are already developed and the remaining plots are expected to be completed by the beginning of 2025. 

The deadline for acquiring one of the plots was 22 June of this year and the application was made online and then the proof of purchase was presented to INCASÒL

It has a total surface area of approximately 53 hectares. They are located in a strategic place, near the Gironella Nord exit of the Eix del Llobregat (C-16), Eix Europeu E9 of communication between Barcelona and Tolosa de Llenguadoc and connected with the Vic – Gironella regional road (C-154).

The Catalan Government is promoting these sectors, generating jobs in Catalonia. They will facilitate the economic growth of Berguedà and will respond to the demand for industrial land.

Catalonia’s logistics market will add more than 650,000 m2 by 2025

In total, the Catalan logistics market will add more than 650,000 square metres over the next three years.

There are currently 412,000 square metres under construction, with delivery scheduled for 2023. To this amount, the 27,000 square metres planned for next year and 211,000 square metres under construction will be added.

This year, 203,000 square metres located in the second ring and 193,000 square metres located in the third ring will be delivered. In the area of the first logistical arch, with an availability of 0.4%, 17,000 square metres will be delivered.

The 41,000 square metre warehouse, owned by Scannell Properties, in Constantí (Tarragonès), will be the first project to come onto the market in 2023. Other projects will also be launched, such as Bentall Green Oak’s 40,000 sqm warehouse in Santa Margarida i els Monjos (Alt Penedès) or Clarion Partners’ project in Esparraguera (Baix Llobregat), with a 22,000 sqm warehouse.

According to the Associate Director of Research at CBRE Spain, Arancha González, availability rates are expected to rise slightly in Barcelona this year, due to the fact that despite the good pace of business, deliveries are being concentrated more in the second and third ring, where, at present, there is not so much demand.

Health startup investment in Catalonia has increased by 87%, bucking the global downward trend

An astonishing 87% increase in investment in the health sector has managed to defy the downward trend observed around the world. The data has been provided by the Study on investment in the Life Sciences & Health sector in Catalonia 2022 promoted by CataloniaBio & HealthTech and EY.

During the year 2022, there have been notable declines in investment in the biotechnology and medical technology sectors in Europe and the US, according to the study. Making a big difference, the Catalan ecosystem continued to thrive and reached an incredible €445 million.

The main source of financing for companies in Catalonia continues to be venture capital (VC) funds. These funds have co-operated in raising €445 million, representing 77% of the total.

In the last year, notable deals have been carried out in the corporate sector, such as Medtech Impress, which raised €122m, and biotech companies Minoryx Therapeutics and SpliceBio, which raised more than €50m each, positioning themselves as key players in their respective sectors.

The digital health sector has raised capital of €39 million and operations increased by almost 20% by 2022. It is worth noting the increase in capital raised by service providers, with €28 million generated by 2022, €6 million more than in 2021.

The origin of the investments is mostly local. Around 90% of the shares of each company are owned by Catalan investors, with the exception of pharmaceutical companies, which tend to obtain foreign investment.

Health Sector Development in 2022

The study was based on direct surveys of companies and institutions belonging to CataloniaBio & HealthTech. The report includes the perspective of investors, offering a complementary view of the sector.

According to the data collected, 80% of the companies surveyed achieved their targets for 2022. Product development companies in the biotech and Medtech sectors were 71% and 82% successful respectively.

In addition, 92% of companies in digital health and 71% in the services sector also met their targets. The pharmaceutical industry performed outstandingly well, with 100% of companies surveyed meeting their targets. Both companies and investors are satisfied with the performance of the healthcare sector in 2022, considering it an example of the quality of the ecosystem and the professionalism of the sector in Catalonia.

INCASÒL opens the doors to economic success in Sant Feliu de Pallerols with the sale of its new sector of activity

The sector will remedy the lack of land due to the existing industrialisation in the area, thus avoiding the relocation of existing companies and expanding the industrial fabric of the municipality.

The two plots have a surface area of 8.483,31 m² floor area and 9.501,31 m² roof area and the other of 27.612,31 m² floor area and 27.612,31 m² roof area.

Organisations interested in acquiring a plot of land must have submitted their application electronically to the electronic registry of the Generalitat de Catalunya before 22 May 2023.

There is no limitation as to the sector to be exploited, there are several possibilities. Industrial and tertiary sector use is foreseen, but other uses such as logistics, warehousing, technical and environmental services, car mechanics, service stations, road services, catering, recreational, educational, health-care, sports for gymnasium activities, paddle tennis, etc., cultural and urban services are also permitted.

The Llongafollia Plan has a surface area of 8.31 hectares. The plots belong to INCASÒL, which are located near the town of Sant Feliu de Pallerols and bordering the C-63 road towards Olot.

A total of 3.6 hectares will be used for economic activity and will be concentrated on the land known as Plan de Llongafollia. On the other hand, the land to be ceded for public facilities and green areas will be in the part located in La Plana.

The new economic activity sector of Sant Feliu de Pallerols, carefully planned for harmonious integration with its surroundings, is strategically located near the natural park of the Garrotxa volcanic area.

AstraZeneca to create 1,000 jobs and invest 800 million in R&D in Barcelona, the largest foreign investment in Catalonia’s history

Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca will invest 800 million euros to create an R&D centre in Barcelona that will become a reference centre for clinical innovation in Europe in the company’s five main therapeutic areas.

The facility will bring together experts in clinical development and operations, pharmaceutical sciences, drug safety and data analytics to develop new therapies and address unmet patient needs. AstraZeneca’s CEO highlighted the importance of public-private collaboration in the development of new medicines and announced the company’s investment plans in Spain until 2025.

In the drug research and development sector, Spain stands out for its high level of professionals and its R&D&I ecosystem. In Catalonia alone, there are 91 research centres and more than 1,300 biopharmaceutical, healthcare, MedTech and digital health companies. The country has authorised more than 900 clinical trials with medicines, demonstrating its commitment to innovation.

The company AstraZeneca has invested more than 93 million euros in innovative projects in 2021, and the investment multiplied last year, reaching almost 400 million euros. In addition, the international pharmaceutical investment project in Barcelona has the support of ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment, the Catalan government’s agency for foreign investment and business competitiveness.

Barcelona has become a strategic location for AstraZeneca, especially since it opened, together with Alexion, its clinical trials centre for rare diseases with an investment of 32 million euros. According to ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment data, Catalonia ranks sixth in Europe in clinical trial development, with more than 1,200 active trials, 50% in oncology, one of the areas in which AstraZeneca is strongest. This demonstrates the importance of the region to the company’s innovation and drug development strategy.

Panattoni acquires land in Parc de l’Alba in Cerdanyola del Vallès to build a data centre

A technology campus of up to 68,000 m² will be built with a 42 MW installed capacity data centre, which is expected to be the largest in Catalonia. The estimated investment for the project is 300 million euros and the first phase, of 42,000 m², will begin to be built at the end of 2023.

Quark, a leader in Architecture, Engineering and Project Management for Data Centres, will be responsible for the design and construction of a large data centre in Cerdanyola, just 20 km from Barcelona.

The future operator and tenant will be defined after an orderly process led by Colliers and Telam Partners. The location of the data centre ensures unbeatable connectivity and immediate power availability, which guarantees the success of the project and is a sure bet for the business development of the future tenant.

Experts are confident that this project will be the largest Data Centre to be built in Catalonia and Spain, and will contribute to expanding the digital infrastructure throughout southern Europe and North Africa. In addition, the project has the support of the Cerdanyola del Vallès City Council.

LaSalle invests in a Scanell logistics ship in Barcelona for 35 million

LaSalle has invested 25 million to raise the property to 21,000 m2. The ship, which has been occupied by the French group Daher since the second quarter of 2022, is located at quince kilometres from Barcelona and 25 kilometres from the port.

Scannell Properties is a private equity company specializing in promoting developed real estate. They have offices in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom, where they have carried out over 360 projects with a total volume of 7.8 million m2.

Since its inception to the national market, the company has deployed a growth strategy, buying land in different parts of the territory. The last operation was at the La Cova industrial estate in Manises, Valencia, with the development of a 19.171 m2 logistical platform.

The logistics centre will be state-of-the-art, sustainable, with additional offices and adapted to customer needs. It will be erected on a plot of 26,589 m2, where a warehouse of 16,612 m2, with offices and anexos buildings, will be built, totaling 2,559 m2 more.

It will have twenty loading docks, a large 32-metre maneuvering beach and a ship-free height of over 11 metres. It will have outdoor parking areas. It is expected to be completed during the third quarter of 2023.

INCASÒL encourages the economic promotion of Parc de l’Alba in Cerdanyola del Vallès

The Institut Català del Sòl, INCASÒL, promotes the environmental promotion of Parc de l’Alba and the municipality of Cerdanyola del Vallès by making the plots available to facilitate the expansion of the activity of the Alba synchrotron.

These new spaces will allow for more detailed and faster analysis of the development of drugs, microchips and green energy.

Parc de l’Alba is located in Cerdanyola del Vallès, north of the city of Barcelona. It is being consolidated as one of the main strategic projects. From Catalonia offering new investment opportunities.

A location surrounded by nature with good connection and connectivity with affordable homes.

The German company BASF will build a new international hub of engineering on the Tarragona plant

Carles Navarro, the general manager of BASF Spain, announced this during the annual results presentation. He commented that Spain plays an important strategic role on the company’s gloal map.

Two locations in the Spanish territory will increase their activities. On the one hand, the center of production in Tarragona, which houses the engineering unit. And on the other hand, Madrid, will take advantage of the synergy with our main partners in the projects of naïveness in the country. One important point in these two new projects is the creation of new jobs, in both locations.

During this 2023, the group will invest some 43 million euros in Spain to improve facilities and processes. In digital transformation, Spain ratified its strategic position in 2022. In Tarragona, at the production center, it has continued to advance with its own private red 5G facility, becoming one of the first companies in Spain, and pioneering chemistry to receive a 5G spectrum of its own to operate.

ICC is performing a new 22.400 m2 logistic project in Sabadell

ICC, the company specializing in the promotion and management of logistical assets and Toyota Material Handling Espaaa have begun construction of the Sabadell ICC Logistic Park, a new project of more than 22,400 m2.

The hub logistic will be erected over a 37,247 m2 (3,247 sq ft) parent cell and will consist of two modules, one of which will be 16,500 m2, which will be the new headquarters for the Japanese company. This module is joined by another 5,900 m2, currently available.

This new Logistics Park will have the ICC label, which supports the highest levels of sustainability in the construction process and in the use of the building. In this respect, the logistics centre will have the most vanguard systems for waste management and energy efficiency.

Use measurements such as photovoltaic panels, LED lights, etc. In order to make it sustainable, the building is planned to opt for the LEED Gold certification granted by the US Green Building Council.

José Luis Martínez, a member of the ICC, comments, “the demand for logistical space remains strong in Catalonia and in this sense logistical centres with such an excellent location as we find ourselves in will continue to awaken interest from both tenants and investors.”

Toyota, future tenant of the new center

Toyota Material Handling Espaaa is one of the future tenants, who will move their headquarters from Barberà del Vallès to Sabadell next year. This location change is part of the company’s growth consolidation strategy, which aims to improve service.

With this privileged location, the firm will offer greater coverage thanks to its connections and facilities, created to provide good service.

The Barcelona Tech Association inaugurates Pier07, a new hub of business innovation dedicated to health

Tech Barcelona and the Government of Catalonia have presented Pier07, a new hub for business innovation in the field of life and health sciences.

The initiative has been supported by ACCIÓ-Catalunya Trade . Investment, which has allocated ,125,000 to the promotion of the project. The headquarters, located in Via Laietana de Barcelona, has been inaugurated by the Minister of Health, Manel Balcells, the Secretary of Business and Competitiveness and the Director General of ACCIÓ-Catalunya Trade . Investment, Albert Castellanos, the President of Tech Barcelona, Miguel Vicente, the CEO of the entity, Miquel Martí.

The entrepreneurial innovation hub Pier07 is intended to boost innovation in the field of health and life sciences, and it becomes a key space for the development of projects in these sectors in the city of Barcelona.

During the inauguration of Pier07, Tech Barcelona president Miguel Vicente noted that “this space represents a unique opportunity for the creation and consolidation of companies in the health sector, as well as to encourage collaboration and innovation among the various agents of the ecosystem”. In addition, he noted that, “from Tech Barcelona we are committed to promoting entrepreneurial growth and entrepreneurship, and Pier07 is an example of this”.

The Secretary of Enterprise and Competitiveness and Director General of ACCIÓ-Catalunya Trade In Investement, Albert Castellanos, has also highlighted the importance of this new hub, stating that “Pier07 is a benchmark in the life and health sciences sector, and its typology has proved very effective in accelerating business development in this area”. He also stressed the contribution of this project to consolidating and projecting Barcelona as an innovative and dynamic city.

For its part, the Health Minister, Manuel Balcells, has subtracted the upsurge in having a space like Pier07, which allows technological advances in the field of health to be put into practice and people’s quality of life to be improved. “The Health . Life Sciences sector is a fundamental pillar of our economy, and with initiatives like this we can continue to drive its growth and its positive impact on society,” she said.

Catalonia received a record sterling investment of 6.4 billion in 2022

This increase is partly due to 229 investment projects by multinational companies, 11% more than in 2021, which will generate some 19,500 new jobs when implemented.

The fDi Markets database is an international tool used by multinational companies to study future business investment projects.

The Catalan Minister for Business and Labour, Roger Torrent, has highlighted that the record number of foreign investment registered in Catalonia in 2022 is excellent, as it is linked to the productive economy and will generate stable and quality jobs.

The Government of Catalonia has broken a historical record in attracting foreign investment in 2022 through ACCIÓ-Catalunya Trade . Investment. Despite the volatility that this type of indicator can generate, Torrent has underlined that the volume of foreign investment recorded in Catalonia in the last five years has reached 20.3 billion euros, representing a 29% increase compared with the previous period.

Over the last five years, 950 projects have been registered, an increase of 58%, and 44,500 associated jobs have been created, representing an 82% increase.

In short, foreign investment in Catalonia is experiencing steady and solid growth that is contributing to boosting the productive economy and generating quality jobs.

Torrent has stated that the main investment projects in 2022 were from companies in the United States, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, Switzerland and China. The main sectors were ICT, machinery and equipment, infrastructure, electronic and electrical equipment, food and pharmaceutical industry.

Catalonia and Barcelona revalidate their first position in the European ranking in strategy to attract foreign investment

  • The Parc de l’Alba project in Cerdanyola del Vallès was a finalist at the MIPIM Awards as Best New Mega Developement.
  • FDi Magazine of the Financial Times consolidates the leadership of Catalonia and its capital in attracting foreign investment.

The Government of Catalonia, through INCASÒL, the Barcelona City Council and the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB) reaffirmed their commitment to inclusive, sustainable and cohesive development models at the world’s leading real estate fair, MIPIM. The fair was held in Cannes (France) from Tuesday 14 March until Friday 17, and was attended by more than 2,400 companies from some eighty countries. More than 2,000 investment and financial companies attended and more than 50% of the participants were CEOs and senior professionals.

Catalonia as a whole, especially Barcelona and its metropolitan area, has a great international, open and cosmopolitan vocation, which seeks to grow in an inclusive manner and to generate wealth and a diversified economy. It is in this sense that Barcelona has been awarded, this 2023, with the distinction of European Entrepreneurial Region.
This is why it is a very attractive territory for foreign investment and the attraction of international talent, as shown by various studies. In 2022, foreign investment in Catalonia reached 620 million euros, a figure that has been on the rise since 2018. Last year’s investment has led to the creation of 3,464 new jobs.

Under the slogan: A way of living! Barcelona Catalonia took its ambitious programme of promotion and investment attraction to MIPIM this year. It had a 250 m² stand and the participation of 35 public and private partners who jointly presented strategic areas and projects. The projects are located in excellent locations connected by a rich network of infrastructures that favour the development of business and host services for international companies and operators.

The outstanding projects presented at the stand were Barcelona Centro, the new 22@, the PDUAE of La Plana de Lleida and La Cònca de Òdena, residential sectors with land available for the development of affordable housing, Biopol-GranVia in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat and Fira, in Cornellà de Llobregat. In this edition, Catalonia Trade & Investment and the universities of Barcelona and the Diagonal-Besòs Campus of the UPC joined the project to increase the value of the offer presented to Cannes. All these business opportunities were projected onto the interactive Barcelona Catalonia model that captured the attention and interest of visitors to this year’s MIPIM.

Barcelona and Catalonia consolidate their leadership in attracting foreign investment

The European Cities and Regions of the Future 2023/2024 report published annually by the Financial Times group’s fDi Magazine ranks Barcelona and Catalonia as the best city and the best territory in terms of investor promotion strategy for the second year running. Thus, Barcelona is ahead of cities such as Berlin and London, and Catalonia is tied with the Ile-de-France region and ahead of the Madrid region and Scotland.

Specifically, Barcelona won the category “Major European Cities of the Future 2023 – FDI Strategy” for its commitment to technology and sustainability. The publication also highlighted the city council’s commitment to encouraging companies to invest in solar energy and Spain’s first green hydrogen plant. They also highlighted the “Plaza Barcelona” initiative, which uses virtual reality to promote the city and facilitate tasks such as finding work.

For its part, Catalonia tied for first place with the French region where Paris is located, in the same category but analysed by region. The jury highlighted Catalonia’s commitment to the SDGs and its digital transformation. It also emphasised the attraction pole, which are the 12 Catalan universities and their engineering degrees. These, according to the magazine, “create a pole of attraction of power that accelerates the transformation of the region” towards an industry 4.0.

The fDi Awards ceremony took place on Tuesday, 14 March.

Parc de l’Alba was nominated as Best New Mega Development at the MIPIM Awards

One of the projects presented at the Barcelona Catalonia stand, Parc de l’Alba in Cerdanyola del Vallès, was selected as a finalist in the Best New Mega Development category at the Mipim Awards, out of 186 projects from 38 different countries.

Parc de l’Alba, located around the Alba Synchrotron, is a new 340.6-hectare sector that will become one of the most advanced platforms for science, technology and entrepreneurship. Its location around the synchrotron and close to the Autonomous University of Barcelona make the site an ideal location for new companies related to research, science, innovation and technology.

The MIPIM Awards are a real estate awards that were created in 1991 and are internationally recognised. The awards recognise the most outstanding projects, consolidated or about to be built all over the world. This year, the awards ceremony was held on Thursday 16 March at 18.30.

Barcelona Catalonia conference. The ESG strategy towards better cities and stronger businesses

The official programme of MIPIM included the Barcelona Catalonia conference. This year, the round table will be entitled The ESG strategy towards better cities and stronger businesses and will take place on Tuesday 15 March at 17.15 in the Verrier Grand Audi hall, at the Palais donis Festivals in Cannes. The conference was given by Jordi Gálvez, member of the governing board of Llar Unió Catalonia, Maria Buhigas, from Urban Facts, Miquel Morell, from Promoacsa, economist expert in real estate trends, and Olivia Blanco, Director of International Operations at PGI Engineering; and was moderated by Carles Vergara, associate professor of Financial Management at the IESE Business School.

The conference focused on the importance of incorporating ESG criteria, which seeks environmental, social and corporate governance, in order to achieve better cities and stronger businesses.

The official programme of the fair also included the Barcelona Conference, where the Commissioner for City Promotion, Pau Solanilla, presented the Green Deal as a framework of opportunity for foreign investment aligned with the values of fairness, sustainability and competitiveness. The conference, entitled “The Barcelona Green Deal: New Investment Opportunities”, explained the transformation of the Olympic Port, the enlargement of Mercabarna and the Diagonal-Besòs Campus. The presentation of the Olympic Port was given by Olga Cerezo, Director of this project, who explained the urban planning changes that the area is undergoing in order to open up to its immediate surroundings and to respond to the challenges of this new stage as a new centre of business activity around the Barcelona economy, of nautical dynamism and development of a new gastronomic model. The conference took place on Thursday 16 March at 10 a.m. in the Verriere Grand Audi of the Palais donis Festivals.

Betting on public-private partnerships to attract foreign investors

As in previous editions of the fair, Barcelona Catalonia has opted for a model of collaboration between public and private agents in the sector to make the range of projects on offer more attractive to foreign investors. In this sense, the Mipim stand was attended by 35 companies with an international vocation and municipal, metropolitan and supra-municipal administrations that collaborate in urban development projects in Catalonia. On this occasion, the Barcelona Catalonia stand was attended by the city councils of Cerdanyola del Vallès, Cornellà de Llobregat, l’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Sant Vicenç dels Horts and Viladecans and the public institutions Catalonia Trade & Investment, Campus Diagonal-Besòs (UPC Barcelona Tech), Cimalsa, Parc del Començar el dia and the University of Barcelona.

Also in attendance were the companies Amat Immobiliaris, API – Col-legi i Associació d’Agents Immobiliaris, Archikubik, BuildingCenter, Cornex Capital, Fabregat Perulles Sales, Forcadell, Gina Barcelona Architects, Grup aFinance (aCapital – aRetail), L35 Architects, Maher Homes, Lava Corporació, Barcino Property, Domus Management, Fomenti, Invest Center Catalonia, Jap, JG Enginyers, Meridiana, Smart Point, Spinnia, Tasinsa, TrGrupo Immobiliario and the social housing cooperative Llar Unió Catalonia.

 

Investment in healthcare startups increases significantly in Catalonia

According to Biocat’s annual report, the Catalan healthcare startup ecosystem raised a total of 445 million euros in 2022, almost double the amount raised the previous year. The healthcare sector already represents 8.7% of Catalan GDP and is made up of 1,350 companies and a hundred research institutions, with an aggregate workforce of 247,600 workers. The CEO of Biocat, Robert Fabregat, highlights that “the ecosystem has continued to grow in most of the identifiers, despite the unstable international situation”, and describes 2022 as “historic”.

The €122 million round from Impress, which specialises in digital treatments for invisible braces, was the highest in the history of the healthcare sector and has driven investment growth. However, the sector would still have outperformed last year’s investment even without the Impress deal, attracting €323 million.

The biotech sector also broke records with €185m, while investment in digital health companies declined for the first time in five years, falling 40% compared to 2021, with only €39m.

Venture capital continues to be the main source of funding, providing 343 million euros, 77% of the total. The Biocat report on the Catalan healthcare sector shows that in 2022 competitive grants were the second most important source of funding for Catalan healthcare startups, with 53 million euros (12% of the total). This figure is the highest ever and almost doubles the figures achieved in previous years. The main contributions came from the European Innovation Council (EIC Accelerator) and the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI).

The health sector in Catalonia shows great business and research dynamism, with more than 1,200 active clinical trials in Catalan hospitals and a participation in 75% of the clinical trials carried out in the rest of Spain. Half of these trials focus on oncology, followed by cardiovascular diseases, ophthalmology, central nervous system, mental health and minority diseases. It should be noted that Catalonia ranks fifth in Europe in terms of scientific publications per million inhabitants.

Port of Barcelona traffic hits record high leaving pandemic behind

After the pandemic, the Port of Barcelona has resumed its activity, surpassing the highest figure in the historical series so far, the 67.8 million tonnes in 2018.

The Port of Barcelona has registered a record at the operational level in 2022 and has managed to exceed its pre-pandemic turnover with 181 million euros. Although this income has been affected by a €25 million recovery plan to cope with the crisis, the year’s profits have improved on those of 2019, reaching €63 million. The Port’s president, Lluís Salvadó, highlighted these results as good, given the complicated international context in which they have been perceived.

The port’s total traffic has recorded a homogeneous growth in all segments, except for container traffic, which has remained similar to the previous year. Excluding containers, the most dynamic traffics have been potash and hydrocarbons, with an increase of 53% and 34.5%, respectively, driven by the investments made in previous years and the energy crisis. 

On the other hand, car traffic has improved significantly with an increase of 18.4%. It should be noted that exports have been affected by the lack of semiconductors and the closure of the Nissan plant. Imports grew by 63% and overall traffic by 145.7%.

José Alberto Carbonell, general manager of the Port of Barcelona, comments, “in recent years, the Port of Barcelona has become a distribution hub”, in order to understand the increase in traffic, with cars coming from Asia and being distributed throughout Europe from the Catalan capital. Electric cars account for 20% of imports, which are increasing and have made China the main origin, relegating Japan.

At present, the segment that continues to suffer the effects of covid are cruises, with 2.3 million passengers registered in 2022, still far from the 3.1 million of 2019, but above the 521,000 of 2021. Moderate growth is expected, between 2% and 3%, although improvements are expected on issues such as the recovery of routes with Barcelona as a home port and deseasonalisation.

Investment plan

The Barcelona Port Authority plans to invest some 300 million euros during 2023, according to Salvadó, “a qualitative leap” compared to previous years, with 32 million invested in 2021. Updating port infrastructures will be the most important item, with 200 million euros earmarked for new berths at the Moll de l’Energia and the enlargement of the Moll Adossat. 

In addition, 35 million euros will be invested in the electrification of the port and 28 million euros in new railway accesses. 31 million euros will also be earmarked for the renovation of the Port Vell, with the aim of preparing it for the America’s Cup.

The sale of plot 3 of Xàmenes in Martorell and Sant Esteve Sesrovires has been completed

The Institut Català del Sòl, INCASÒL, has finalized the commercialization of an industrial and logistic land of 36.791 m² in the sector Xàmenes, located in Martorell and Sant Esteve Sesrovires. The land was of public ownership and property of INCASÒL and the town councils of Martorell and Sant Esteve Sesrovires. In addition, the project includes three more privately owned plots and the development works of the sector are in progress, with an expected completion date of the second quarter of 2024.

Plot 3 is an industrial and logistics land located in the Xàmenes sector, in the southeast of the sector, with a green area to the north and plot 2 to the east. The sector is close to the SEAT factory in Martorell, and has access to the AP-7, A-2, high-speed line, and B-224 road. Its location is strategic in the metropolitan area of Barcelona, as it is less than 45 minutes from important communication infrastructures, such as the airport and the port of Barcelona, and from the main passenger and freight train routes. It is also well connected to the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya.

The development of Xàmenes is within the framework of the Urban Master Plan (PDU) for the economic activity of Baix Llobregat North, which includes three sectors: the Zona Oest, Can Cases and Xàmenes, with the aim of generating new opportunities for economic and territorial development in the area. Given that these are new development sectors, the PDU gives great importance to sustainability and landscape integration, incorporating landscape integration measures and architectural quality in the construction conditions.

The Port Olímpic moves towards a sustainable economy and nautical activities

Barcelona City Council’s Governing Committee has begun processing the Special Urban Development and Uses Plan for the Port Olímpic. The aim is to turn this infrastructure into a space without barriers and with better connections, to create an area that promotes the blue economy and gastronomy, and to democratise access to marine activities.

The scope of the plan covers a total area of 180,925 square metres, of which 103,561 correspond to the land where the port infrastructure will be built, including the Mestral, Marina, Gregal, Xaloc and Dic de Recer, while the rest, 77,363 square metres, correspond to the sheltered sheet of water. The total ceiling foreseen for the scope of the plan is 32,700 square metres.

According to the City Council, the plan confirms the commitment to the nautical sector, the sustainable economy and catering as the central axes of the new Port Olímpic’s activity. 

In relation to the blue economy, nautical training, dissemination and recreational activities are promoted, with the aim of helping the people of Barcelona to gain a better relationship with the sea. The presence of entrepreneurs and nautical service companies will also be encouraged.

The plan places emphasis on improving accessibility to the Port of Barcelona, with the construction of new accesses from the Vila Olímpica and the beach, as well as the creation of public spaces specifically designed for walking and sporting activities. The City Council has reported that the works for the construction of the new access from the coastal ring road are progressing at a ‘good pace’, as well as the adaptation of the premises of the Moll of Mestral and the urbanisation of the Dic de recer. In addition, the refurbishment of the Sailing Centre is being put out to tender.

The plan also stresses the importance of promoting the use of green spaces, renewable energy and waste collection, among other initiatives to combat climate change and increase commitment to sustainability. 

Generalitat to approve the project to modernise Barcelona’s railway infrastructure

The urban master plan (PDU) for the creation of the southern rail-port node in the port of Barcelona has been initially approved by the Generalitat de Catalunya. The Territorial Commission has given the go-ahead to the document, which must go through a phase of allegations with the various entities affected by the urban redevelopment of the area and with the public. It is expected to receive final approval in the first quarter of 2023. The Generalitat is promoting the modernisation of the rail accesses to the port of Barcelona with the awarding of the preliminary phase of their construction.

The project affects 68 hectares of land in the southern area of the site

The rail-port node will incorporate up to six different terminals, which will extend in the southern part of the port area. The document lays the foundations for what is to be the Port of Barcelona’s Intermodal Logistics Terminal.

According to the Port Authority of Barcelona, the totality of infrastructures will be “a very powerful railway node”, which will provide a service to the port, but also to its surroundings: the Zona Franca, the Prantenc Industrial Estate and the industries located in the Baix Llobregat and the southern area of Barcelona. In addition, this node will facilitate a sustainable and efficient flow of maritime-terrestrial traffic, as well as land-maritime traffic. 

There are spaces that will fall into disuse, such as the Morrot terminal, so the urban plan considers how to make the most of these spaces. The plan also envisages the creation of 20.8 hectares of green public spaces and the Corredor Verde Parc Agrari del Llobregat – Parc de Montjuïc, is a network of itineraries connecting the different logistics and port areas to the natural spaces. 

As for Morrot, the future Intermodal Logistics Terminal is expected to absorb all its operations and free up its current terminal for a use yet to be defined. This investment is part of a comprehensive plan to improve connectivity with the surrounding area by building cycle lanes, improving pedestrian accessibility, extending the public transport network and developing green and recreational areas. The funds will also be used for the installation of security systems to improve the safety of workers and visitors to the port.

The Generalitat de Catalunya celebrates Cisco’s investment by opening its first semiconductor design centre in Barcelona

This is a strategic investment that will have a significant impact on boosting R&D activity in Catalonia. For the Government, this is an important investment linked to semiconductors, with the aim of boosting local industry and attracting new foreign investment projects to the sector. 

 

Government of Catalonia is delighted that the US multinational Cisco is opening a semiconductor design centre in Barcelona, making it the first city in the European Union to have such an infrastructure.

 

This type of investment is highly competitive internationally and contributes to guaranteeing Catalonia’s technological independence, as well as that of Europe. 

 

The relationship between Catalonia and Cisco has been growing closer in recent months. The Catalan president, Pere Aragonès, met during the last Mobile World Congress with the CEO of the multinational, Chuck Robbins, as well as with the company’s vice-president, Mark Patterson, and the general manager of Cisco in Spain, Andreu Vilamitjana. 

 

The new semiconductor design centre in Barcelona has created 150 new skilled jobs. The company has also expanded its Barcelona design centre by 1,200 m2 and plans to build a new 3,000 m2 building in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat with a test laboratory.

Renfe invests 5 million euros in new access controls at Rodalies stations

The project tendered by Renfe for the supply, replacement, installation and maintenance of access control machinery at Rodalies de Catalunya stations involves an investment of €5,122,342.32 including IVA.

 

The obsolete access control equipment is being replaced to install it in stations that do not have access control and wherever it is necessary. 

 

The new installations will be adapted for people with reduced mobility, will be bi-directional, and will have contactless card reader devices, 1D/2D barcodes and T-Mobilitat barcodes, both at the entrance and exit. 

 

This project responds to one of the points of Renfe’s Strategic Plan. This document includes the promotion of digital transformation and the provision of security and comfort for the customer. 

 

It is an action financed by NextGenerationEU funds. 

Five urban innovation projects win the third edition of the “La ciudad proactiva” call for proposals

BIT Habitat, in charge of promoting urban innovation to respond to social, economic, technological and environmental challenges, launches the third edition of “La ciudad proactiva. Innovación con impacto”.

 

The winning projects will receive half a million euros, which will be used to finance up to 80% of each project. 

 

The five winning projects present solutions to address the challenges of energy transition, climate emergency, urban transformation, housing and social cohesion

 

The winning projects are:

 

  • Logirepak: presented by Fundación Catalana para la Prevención de Residuos y Consumo Responsable [Recero] y Design by Intuition [Paka] Urban logistics network for the reuse of packaging for fresh food in city markets. Subsidised with 120,000 €. 
  • TEPAC: presented by the following organisations: Batec Pol Cooperatiu per la Transició Energètica, Azimut 360 y La Fabric@. Seeking to unblock the use of communal rooftops to facilitate the construction of energy communities. Subsidised with 120,000 €.
  • RAVALoritza: presented by Transfolab Bcn and Raons públiques, participatory design and co-creation of furniture for the space of the Casal dels Infants del Raval youth group, with an educational strategy. Subsidised with around €40,000. 
  • RESPIRA: project presented by the group formed by Noumena Design Research Education, el Instituto de Arquitectura Avanzada de Cataluña, la Asociación de Vecinos y Vecinas del Poblenou and Plataforma de Entidades de las Roquetes. Subsidised with nearly €100,000.
  • DaTaLoG: initiative presented by Universidad Pompeu Fabra and Ideas for Change.Data trust that will allow, in a participatory manner, the use of water, electricity and gas consumption data to make better decisions on access, savings and the impact of energy consumption. Subsidised with approximately €115,000. 

 

In addition to financial support, BIT Habitat will provide the projects with expert mentoring and facilitate access to technology in order to develop prototypes. It will also provide technical accompaniment and communication and dissemination support. 

Currently, 22 innovative projects are underway thanks to this aid initiative launched in 2022.

The expansion of Parc de l’Alba and the Synchrotron is now a reality

He made the visit accompanied by the Catalan Minister for Research and Universities, Joaquim Nadal, and with them was the director of the ALBA Synchrotron, Caterina Biscari. Also present during the visit were Joan Gómez, Director General of Research, Carlos Cordón, the mayor of Cerdanyola del Vallès, Javier Lafuente, the rector of the UAB, Pere Solà, the director of Parc de l’Alba and Joan Borràs, the territorial delegate of Barcelona. 

 

Aragonès highlighted the ALBA II project as “one of Catalonia’s great scientific assets and an exceptional research tool”.  

 

TRANSFER OF LAND FOR THE ALBA II PROJECT

 

At the end of the visit, the President, accompanied by the Councillor and the director of ALBA, confirmed the transfer of the adjacent land to ALBA. This land will double the current surface area of the ALBA Synchrotron.

 

It is an opportunity for the future development of a scientific and innovation pole in collaboration with other institutions. 

 

The ALBA II project foresees the construction of three new extra-long beamlines to be located on the new land allocated to the project. The project will carry out the modernisation of existing scientific instruments, the development of the infrastructure to store and analyse data and the creation of a state-of-the-art instrument that will be available, from 2030 onwards, to the public and private scientific community with the aim of solving societal challenges and advancing knowledge of the world around us. 

Approval of the Biopol-Granvia del Hospitalet Urban Development Master Plan

This is the new version of the instrument, previously called PDU Gran Via-Llobregat, after the reformulation during the last two years after the courts declared it null and void in 2020.

 

This Pla Director Urbanístic is the way to establish the urban planning guidelines to develop the innovation and health “biocluster”. A group of companies linked to biomedicine in which the Bellvitge Hospital, the UB Health Sciences campus, the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) and the Duran i Reynals Hospital, headquarters of the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO) will be present.

 

This project is led jointly by the Generalitat and the city council, which have stated that, “The mission of the new PDU is the transformation and development of the land to promote the implementation of a new pole of economic activity linked to research, biomedical research and health sciences”.

 

This project affects 8% of the territory of l’Hospitalet de Llobregat and involves an investment of some 229 million euros. The initial validation of this process is the most relevant procedure. The corresponding provisional and definitive approvals will follow later.

 

This project aims to strengthen and consolidate biomedical research and innovation through an ecosystem that attracts companies in the health sector. The initiative is expected to create around 50,000 jobs and a turnover of more than 7 billion euros.

Barcelona to invest 10 million euros in funds from fund managers based in the metropolitan area

The City Council’s aim is to consolidate the city as the digital capital of southern Spain. According to Deputy Mayor Jaume Collboni, ten million euros will be invested in six private venture capital funds through a new public-private fund, Barcelona Accelera

 

The six selected funds must commit to invest at least three times the amount committed by the city council, which in no case can be their initial investment, as their contribution will represent a maximum of 10%.

 

The aim of the council is to recover the capital invested within a decade and to promote start-ups in the city.

 

The projects will be chosen through a competition, in which certain requirements must be met. Some of these requirements are to be based in the Catalan capital or in a town in the metropolitan area and to form part of one of the strategic sectors that form part of the ‘Barcelona Green Deal’ schedule.  In addition, the city council will take into account for part of the investment, companies led by women. 

 

The initiative will be led by the municipal economic development agency Barcelona Activa

 

Aena boosts the growth of El Prat airport planned for 2024

To begin with, a hotel will be put out to tender in Terminal 2 from 2024, although construction will not be completed until 2026. There are also plans for 36 hectares of logistics space in front of T2 and, in time, the development of a hotel in T1, as well as offices. So far, Aena has not been able to carry out any of the project due to a lack of political consensus.

Despite opposition to airport expansion, Aena plans to develop 151 hectares at Barcelona airport. On the other hand, at Madrid-Barajas Airport, Aena awarded P3, a subsidiary of Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, the development of 32 hectares for logistics uses for around 170 million euros. The next step will be to add offices and hotels to the airport city by the end of next year. 

During the first half of 2025 it is planned to launch the logistics hub at the Costa del Sol-Malaga Airport and during the first six months of 2026, its hotel hub. The master plans for Valencia and Seville are expected to be finalised in 2023. 

More than 9,000 multinationals set up in Catalonia

The long list has just been joined by technology companies such as Cisco and its first European chip design centre in Ca L’Alier, the investments of Lenovo and Intel in the BSC, or that of the American MPS in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat. There have also been incorporations in the automotive sector, with the South Korean ILJIN, and in the health sector, with AstraZeneca’s new technology centre for rare diseases, the digital centre of the Swiss company Ypsomed and Veeva, which specialises in software development for the pharmaceutical industry. 

In numbers, they have surpassed those before the pandemic, when there were 8,908 (2019). As a result, Acció is working with a portfolio of 613 foreign investment projects, which is 56% more than in 2020. 

Typology of companies

The more than 9,000 multinationals established in Catalonia account for 18.5% of employment in Spain. It is worth noting that the majority are located in the Barcelonès region (60.8%), Vallès Occidental (11.2%) and Baix Llobregat (10.6%).

Micro-companies are predominant with a percentage of 42.6%, ahead of small companies (29.1%), medium-sized companies (19.8%) and large companies, which account for the lowest percentage (8.5%). On the other hand, companies more than 20 years old since their creation stand out (33%). 

In terms of sectors, infrastructure and construction are by far the main players, with almost 2,000 companies, representing 13.1% of the total. They are followed by ICT and Industry 4.0 companies with 897, or 9.8%, and machinery and capital goods with 658, or 7.2%. 

On the other hand, the origin of these companies is varied, but by far the largest proportion comes from Europe (74%). Behind them are those from North America (15%) and Asia (8%). Finally, the countries that account for 57.7% of the total are France, the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy.

Barcelona improves its attraction of talent in Europe after the new law on ‘Startups’

There are several factors that determine a professional’s decision when deciding where to develop his or her career or invest. Not only the quality of life or pleasant weather. 

Barcelona has positioned itself in recent years as a winning city in the league of attracting international talent, even so, its potential has not been maximised as a result of some shortcomings. Some of these include excessive bureaucracy, a lack of English-language education and a number of other shortcomings that prevent the city from exploiting its full potential.

The Barcelona Global association’s main objective is to eliminate or reduce these obstacles. The organisation is convinced that Barcelona has the potential to become one of the world’s leading cities for talent and the economy. 

The new Startups Law, which the association has been working on for more than five years, has specific objectives. Starting with effectively improving taxation, reducing bureaucracy and boosting the entrepreneurial ecosystem and attracting talent. 

Although the regulation is an improvement for the whole of Spain, it will mainly benefit the Catalan capital, according to Maite Barrera, president of the association involved. The city will be able to better capitalise on the changes introduced, given that it is currently considered the third favourite city in Europe to create a startup.

Some of the successful tech companies born in Barcelona are Glovo, Wallbox, Travelperk, Factorial, eDreams and Privalia, all of which have added value to the Catalan capital. In addition, the new law will attract digital hubs of large companies such as Nestlé, Pepsico, HP and Amazon, among others. 

Barcelona is pioneer in setting up an interchangeable battery station for cars and motorbikes

Cepsa and Acciona-Silence have joined forces to promote this electric battery exchange point for cars and motorbikes. Barcelona is the pioneer city in setting up this station. The main objective of the project is to facilitate the rapid recharging of batteries. 

Carlos Sotelo, CEO of Silence and Mobility Acciona explains, “the user arrives and has an already charged battery at his disposal”. The executive adds, “we are talking about a system that is more economical and cleaner than petrol”. 

The exchange station will be located on Carrer Comte d’Urgell. In the coming months, the two companies plan to build ten similar facilities in Barcelona and the country’s capital. 

Main advantages of the service

The main advantage of this new service is its immediacy, as the process is very similar in time to refuelling. In addition, this service encourages the use of electric vehicles, offering a 40% saving on the purchase cost. In this case, the batteries are not included, they are rented.

This service will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Customers will pay a monthly fee to take advantage of the service and, according to media reports, a fee that is significantly lower than that paid for fuel.

 This test responds to the need to anticipate future scenarios such as the increasing demand for green hydrogen in road vehicle transport. The ultimate goal is for the population to have access to renewable energy sources, in the shortest possible time, in order to guarantee long journeys without problems. 

In 2022 the tourism sector in Catalonia will provide 7.8% more employment than in 2021

During October, tourist employment in Catalonia fell by 4.3% compared with September. In figures, 12,496 workers were no longer employed in October compared with the previous month. This event coincides with the end of the summer season and is not perceived as negative, as compared with the previous year, recruitment has increased by 7.8%. 

In Spain as a whole, the tourism sector employed 2.5 million people in October, 69,834 fewer than in September. Even so, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism emphasised that this is the best historical record for the tenth month of the year. In the whole of Spain the growth was 6.4%.

Compared to last year, the number of employed workers increased by 10.2%, a figure that is worth noting. On the other hand, self-employed workers decreased by 1%.  In figures, there were 225,703 employees and 55,240 self-employed.

Nestlé invests 100 million euros in its Girona factory

The Swiss multinational Nestlé will invest 100 million euros in the Girona factory over the next three years. The aim is to strengthen the production of single-dose capsules, as well as the production of soluble coffee with Spray Dry technology. The investment also involves the installation of state-of-the-art technology to accelerate the improvement of sustainability and logistics.

Jordi Jaen, director of the Nestlé factory in the Catalan city, says, “We are very proud to attract this investment to the Girona factory in recognition of the professional qualifications and skills of the team. It also represents a step forward in the consolidation of the factory as a reference plant for the Group”.

In addition, the investment will mean an increase in production capacity, which will maintain the factory’s current level of employability and create new job opportunities for years to come. Nestlé employs around 276,000 people and is present in 186 countries.

It should be noted that there will be a reorganisation of some activities, such as the closure of the decaffeinated coffee production area.

Over the last few years, the Girona factory has grown considerably to become a world reference centre for the manufacture of soluble coffee and beverages in single-dose capsules.

Successful Saló Nàutic closes with 50.000 visitors and more than 700 vessels

This year’s event had a clear focus on sustainability, featuring electric and hybrid boats.

The 60th edition of the Saló Nàutic Internacional de Barcelona closed on 16th October with more than 50,000 visitors, 279 exhibitors, more than 700 boats and 80 novelties, according to the Fira de Barcelona.

It was held at the Moll de la Madera, the Moll de España and the Marina Port Vell in Barcelona and lasted five days. The event has increased its offer by 22% and has increased its space by 40%, according to the Fira de Barcelona.

The event aimed to promote sustainability in the sector, showcasing new electric and hybrid boats. The show was attended by 400 international buyers, who were able to see 28 catamarans and 14 boats, which are candidates for the Mejor Barco Europeo del Año.

The fair has been the setting for the presentation to visitors of the America’s Cup, which will be held in 2024 off the coast of Barcelona. For this reason, the New Zealand organising team has been present and the visit of the members of the Swiss team Alinghi, a group that is already training in the Catalan capital, has been reported.

INNOVATION

Fifteen start-ups from seven different countries have presented their projects for a digitised and less aggressive marine environment. A small-scale boat has been presented, with an aesthetic similar to that of a car, which functions as a taxi but at sea. This is the project of the company Seabubble and the difference it presented compared to similar projects from other years is that the boat is completely electric. The aim of this proposal is to save time and energy, according to statements made by Joan Company, one of the promoters of this project.

Another innovation presented during the show was a remotely operated life-saver, with the purpose of reaching the victim as quickly as possible. It is a project created by a Valencian company called Proteus. The lifeguard has a built-in microphone and loudspeaker, so that the rescuer and the victim can be in contact.

The event organisers have declared that “it has been one of the best events in recent years thanks to the large number of visitors registered, the quality of the offer and the business contacts generated”, which helps to reinforce the event as a leader and benchmark in the sector in Spain.

By the end of this year the Barcelona Cable Landing Station will be ready to receive the first submarine cables.

The first digital port in Catalonia is located in Sant Adrià de Besòs. It will be a strategic area for fibre optic connections in southern Europe.

Barcelona Cable Landing Station is the first landing station to be built in Catalonia with an international dimension. This infrastructure will soon become a benchmark digital port in the Mediterranean. The first two cables are expected to arrive at the end of the year, although the infrastructure is ready to receive up to eight submarine fibre optic cables.

The infrastructure has involved an investment of seven million euros. All the capital has been provided by AFR-IX telecom, which is a Catalan telecommunications company that has promoted the project and will soon move its headquarters to the building.

“Considering that 98% of internet traffic is carried by submarine cable, Barcelona Cable Landing Station will be a key part of gaining connectivity with the world,” said Norman Abi, CEO of the company.

Over the next ten years, all eight international submarine cables are expected to land, making the infrastructure an essential hub for the digital economy of the entire country, creating an alternative to the port of Marseille, which is currently suffering from saturation due to the high number of cables landing there.

WHAT IS A SUBMARINE CABLE?

Submarine cables perform the same function as an aircraft at an airport, but in this case they carry information. The data on these fibre optic cables is sent from the landing station to different data centres.

In this case, it is the first open port in Catalonia and the second in Spain, i. e-access for unrestricted cable access. It is an innovation, since usually each company that owns a cable has to build its own landing station for the cable connection.

INFRASTRUCTURE

The location of the digital port is in Sant Adrià de Besòs. It is a two-storey building with a total area of 2,657 m2 in which eight rooms have been fitted out for laying the submarine cables, each with a capacity for 16 telecommunications racks. The facilities meet all safety standards, as well as energy efficiency, since the structure has 194 solar panels.

New incubator dedicated to the logistics business in the Zona Franca de Barcelona

The Zona Franca Consortium of Barcelona has won a public call for grants from the Incyde Foundation of the Spanish Chambers of Commerce to set up a high-tech logistics 4.0 Incubator, which will be located in the DFactory Barcelona.

After resorting to a public call for aid from the Incyde Foundation of the Spanish Chambers of Commerce, it has allowed them to cover 50% of the two million euros of investment planned for this initiative. This project will be active towards the beginning of 2023, according to sources from the Zona Franca.

The project will cover different objectives oriented towards emerging technologies within the logistics sector. The incubator aims to improve business competitiveness, the value of new technological applications and increase economic activity in the Zona Franca de Barcelona by increasing its attractiveness. In order to optimise the different processes, it involves robotics and automated warehouses. And to optimise the processes, the big date will be used to collect all the data generated.

The incubator will enable Catalonia to prosper with competitive advantages. It will make up 29% of Spain’s logistics surface area. It has some 39,000 companies in the sector, which is why it is a key territory for boosting the sector. The main improvements will be in the efficiency and versatility of production processes, as well as the internationalisation of initiatives and the development of innovation and specialised talent.

On the other hand, the opportunities of this project are to increase the economic impact and develop greater digital competences, both in skills and knowledge to consolidate the logistics centre.

Incyde has launched 23 high-tech incubators throughout Spain. Pepe Navarro, State delegate in the Zona Franca Consortium of Barcelona, stressed the importance of this because, “it is a key moment in the development of the logistics sector”. He added that the objective is to strengthen and reinforce the role of the Zona Franca.

Barcelona receives recognition as the best “smart city”

Barcelona is considered the best “smart city” abroad, according to the World Smart City Expo Korea. The award of Barcelona highlights its leadership and governance of innovative projects in various areas of technological transformation.

The event is one of the most important smart city events in the Asia-Pacific region, bringing together governments, businesses and experts in the field.

The smart city designation coincided with a visit by the Delegación de Promoción Económica to the Asian capital to strengthen institutional relations with the country.

OBJECTIVES OF THE TRIP TO THE ASIAN CAPITAL

The aim of strengthening these relations is to foster economic collaboration and innovation, as well as to encourage tourists to visit Barcelona. The main idea is for the strategic market to reopen after two years of health restrictions.

In addition, the direct international air connection between the Catalan capital and Seoul has recently been restored, with a schedule of three flights a week.

“Barcelona has been working for some time to position itself as a hub of digital innovation in southern Europe and wants to be the capital of reference and gateway to Asia, so consolidating ties with Korea, the tenth largest economy in the world and the most innovative, is a priority for the positioning of the city,” said Barcelona City Council in a statement.

The new logistics hub for Korean companies in Barcelona begins operations

The new logistics center B2B Logistics Busan Barcelona Hub, located in the ZAL Barcelona, is launched with the aim of becoming the main entry point for Korean products in Southern Europe and a distribution center for the Spanish, French, Portuguese and Italian markets, as well as for North Africa.

The logistics platform, promoted by the ports of Barcelona and Busan (Korea), has an initial surface area of 9,129 square meters. It will be managed by the operators FM Logistic, its first warehouse in the ZAL, and Taewoong Logistic, which has not yet operated in Europe.

It is worth noting that in 2021, traffic between the port of Barcelona and Korea amounted to 793,000 tonnes, a figure similar to that achieved in 2019, before the pandemic. In addition, more than 55% of Spanish maritime imports from Korea enter through the port of Barcelona, with Catalonia being the main destination for Korean imports.

The President of the Port of Barcelona, Damià Calvet, stated that “our objective is to facilitate, speed up and make trade between Europe and Korea more sustainable. In both cases, they are very powerful economies that can make their ties grow. Asia is our market of reference and represents more than 50% of the exports and imports that pass through the port of Barcelona and Korea. It is a benchmark country for technological and high value-added products, one of the segments in which we also have an outstanding position”.

Catalan exports grow by 14% in the first quarter and exceed 21,000 million euros

Between January and March 2022, Catalan exports of goods recorded an increase of 14% compared to the same period in 2021, according to the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Tourism. Catalan sales abroad accounted for 24.4% of the total for the whole of Spain, ahead of Madrid with 16.5% and Andalusia with 11.8%: Barcelona recorded the highest increase in exports (19%) with 16,296 million euros exported between January and March this year. It is followed by Tarragona with an increase of 2.9% and 996 million euros and Girona with an increase of 2.1% and 683 million euros.

The sectors that have led Catalan exports are chemical products, which have represented 32% of total exports in Catalonia, followed by capital goods (15%) and food, beverages, and tobacco (14%).

And in national terms, Spanish exports of goods rose by 23.9% in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the same period of the previous year. It reached 89,611 million euros, a volume that represents an all-time high for this period.

Barcelona quintupled foreign investment in 2020, attracting 100 million euros

The Catalan capital attracted 100 million euros in foreign investment in the city, five times the figure for 2020. A figure that has generated around 885 jobs, doubling the previous year’s figure.

Jaume Collboni, the city’s first deputy mayor, stresses that Barcelona is in the process of recovering from the pandemic, and that the indicators are constantly improving, a phenomenon perceived by foreign companies, which have confidence in the city.
In reference to the companies that have invested in Barcelona in the last year, we find that 54% of them belong to the technology and communications sector, followed by creative and cultural production.

Some of the investments that the City Council wanted to highlight are, on the one hand, the PepsiCo project, which aims to lead the corporate digital transformation, from its recently arrived Global Digital Hub in Barcelona, which will create 400 jobs over the next two years. Read more about the launch of its new digital hub in Barcelona here.

By 2022, the City Council is already working on the development of 62 projects, 65% of which are outside the European Union, predominantly in the information and communication technologies sector.

Bitcoin multinational Bitpanda is investing 10 million in a new hub in Barcelona

Bitpanda, an Austrian fintech specialising in Bitcoin trading, joins the group of multinationals such as PepsiCo and Microsoft, which will open a technology headquarters in Barcelona to specialise in product and customer experience.

 

The company plans to invest 10 million euros in the opening of the centre. Most of the investment will go towards hiring technological talent, especially engineers, designers and product developers, with the aim of completing a team of 100 workers by 2022.

 

According to the company’s product director, Enzersdorfer-Konrad, it has chosen Barcelona for its powerful technology ecosystem of start-ups, talent and universities, as well as a great quality of life in the city, which will be a key component in attracting professionals from all over the world.

Since its birth in 2014, Bitpanda is valued at more than 4,000 million dollars and has more than 600 workers around the world, which has managed to be considered a unicorn company.

Hotel investment breaks records with Barcelona at the forefront

Funds are struggling to get into the city as ever and are paying higher prices than those set in 2019.

In the aftermath of the pandemic, some chains have divested themselves of emblematic buildings in Barcelona in order to gain liquidity, which has given international tourism funds the opportunity to acquire hotels that would not have been put up for sale if it were not for the pandemic.

Hotel investment has soared throughout Spain in 2021, with 2,602 million euros in hotel investment in Spain up to October, 681 million (26.2%) corresponding to Catalonia and 654 million (25.1% of the total) to Barcelona in tourism assets.

The market is confident in Barcelona’s recovery as a tourist destination, and experts predict a prosperous future for the sector.

The Economist ranks Barcelona as the 4th safest European city.

The Economist Intelligence Unit ha publicat ja la quarta edició del seu estudi Safe Cities Index 2021, en el qual classifica la seguretat de les 60 majors àrees urbanes mundials sota 76 indicadors dels camps de seguretat digital, sanitària, infraestructures, personal i, nova enguany, ambiental.

In this fourth edition, we find Barcelona with a score of 77.8/100, placing it as the 4th safest city in Europe and the 11th safest in the world. Regarding the distribution of the score, in this graph we can see Barcelona’s score in the different fields of security, achieving the 9th position in the world in health security.

Copenhagen has been ranked the safest city in the world, moving from eighth position in the previous edition to the top position this year, followed by Toronto and Singapore.

 

After the impact of Covid-19, the concept of safety needs a more holistic approach in healthcare, with the obvious speed of spread of the virus in urban areas, health has become a key factor that needs more planning and urban resilience. In addition, digital security is now an even higher priority, due to the rise of online work and commerce, urban areas will now compete to become the pioneers of smart cities.

ConrenTramway acquires lands in 22@ to build an office building of 9.000m2.

La firma d’inversions immobiliàries CorenTramway amb seu a Barcelona, fundada pels germans Jaime-Enrique i Paco Hugas, realitzarà una inversió de 45 milions d’euros en el districte barceloní del 22@.

L’objectiu d’aquesta inversió és promoure un immoble amb 9.000 metres quadrats, les obres del qual s’iniciaran en 2023, i comptarà amb pàrquing privat i 700 m² de zones verdes.

Aquest nou projecte de la gestora ConrenTramway ja en suma quatre a la zona del 22@.