Barcelona will allocate €130 million to the new strategic plan for science and innovation, double the amount in the previous plan.

he Barcelona City Hall You will specialize 130 million euros To the new Strategic Plan for Science and Innovation, Resources are twice as high as before. The mayor of Barcelona announced this on Tuesday.Jaume Colboni (PSC), Which places sustainable growth, economic diversification and internationalization of the city as the backbone of the proposal.

Among the initiatives to be developed between 2024 and 2027, the Council proposed a new decree for Research and Transport Tax Exemption Aims to attract and retain R&D intensive companies In the city. Of the total investment 50 million They will be allocated to transportation, 45 to scientific culture, 20 to research, 13.5 to the ecosystem and two to training.

Specifically, the plan includes a set of initiatives organized in 5 strategic lines, 8 business lines, 5 driving projects, 10 strategic projects and 46 concrete actionsThe aim, according to the mayor, is to “strengthen Barcelona’s leadership as the European capital of science and innovation.” The plan is based on the will and tradition of being leaders, as well as “being present with the ecosystem of universities, research centres and researchers” in the city.

Among the main objectives of the plan, the Council set out to move towards climate neutrality, expand and enhance women’s participation in science and technology, and contribute to AI-based public governance.

Sector-wise, the city aspires to be pivotal in the design and production of electronic and photonic chips, to consolidate its position. Biotechnology capital and health sciences and also become a reference in the creation and use of digital and quantitative technologies.

The Catalan capital currently has 6 scientific centres, 6 technology parks, 8 universities, 8 hospitals with research institutes, and 80 scientific research centres, 1,350 research companies and more than 40,000 researchers Working in the Barcelona metropolitan area.

Research Tax Exemption

Another notable measure of the plan is the proposed Research and Transportation Tax Credit Act, which aims to attract and retain R&D-intensive companies, strengthen the commercial fabric and attract talent and innovation, the city council explained.

Specifically, the Council plans to maintain the tax exemption. 95% in IBI for research centers and universities, but it also proposes a new bonus for economic activities considered to be of particular importance or municipal benefit in companies that invest in research and innovation through collaboration with universities, research centres or deep-tech startups, among others.

Regarding the IAE, the City Council proposes bonuses of 50% or more for investments in fixed assets with a value of more than million euros, In addition to creating job opportunities and supporting companies that establish innovation centers or start-ups in the city.

The first center in the country of the Fraunhofer Institute is located in Barcelona.

To achieve this transfer of knowledge, the Council considered the creation of the first “Key” centre in Spain in Barcelona. Fraunhofer Institutean organization dedicated to applied research. This is an initiative promoted by the Spanish and Catalan governments that seeks to “promote” the capital as a scientific center in biomedicine and bioengineering. This headquarters will be located in the Barcelona Science Park and will be an alliance with the Institute of Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC).

In the same vein, the plan will include measures to enhance the project to create a scientific ecosystem in Ciutadella Park, To promote the Diagonal-Besos campus as a space for innovation, knowledge and green talent and to strengthen 22@ as a pole for ecological transformation. It also plans to support Eix Diagonal Salut projects, such as the construction of Nou Clínic, and to accompany the La Industrial+ initiative, in the buildings of the Barcelona Industrial School.