Southern Europe´s Cleantech Hub: Your best business, our companies

Innobasque, the Basque Innovation Agency, presents SOUTHERN EUROPE´S CLEANTECH HUB, a platform located in the Basque Country and capable of becoming the leading region in clean technologies in Southern Europe. The venture requires joint innovation by all players that are part of this emerging market related to environmental sustainability, so that the maximum benefit of the reference business and technological elements available in the field of clean technologies in the Basque Country is obtained. This small territory has excellent starting conditions to be eligible.

• The Basque Country has the capability to be the leading region in Southern Europe in the development, innovation and commercialization of clean technologies, i.e. SOUTHERN EUROPE’S CLEANTECH HUB.
• The Basque Country has a proven entrepreneurial culture, important R&D&I investment intensity, a solvent financial force and acknowledged technology centres.
• Innobasque, the Basque Innovation Agency, and its partners in the clean technologies sector have created a powerful network with the involvement of public and private companies and organizations that is growing on a daily basis.

Munich, 16 April 2012. Despite the crisis situation in developed countries, there is a market niche with strong prospects for wealth creation, capable of creating quality jobs in Europe: “cleantech”, clean technologies, a market whose size is going to multiply threefold worldwide in the next decade. This sector is expected to grow at an average rate of 6.5% per year up to 2020, when it will form a market of 3.1 billion euros that invests 9 billion dollars every year. To take advantage of this opportunity,  Innobasque, the Basque Innovation Agency, presents SOUTHERN EUROPE´S CLEANTECH HUB, a platform located in the Basque Country and capable of becoming the leading region in clean technologies in Southern Europe. The venture requires joint innovation by all players that are part of this emerging market related to environmental sustainability, so that the maximum benefit of the reference business and technological elements available in the field of clean technologies in the Basque Country is obtained. This small territory has excellent starting conditions to be eligible.

Consequently, Innobasque and its substantial network of partners are developing a strategy which is going to place SOUTHERN EUROPE’S CLEANTECH HUB on the global map for clean technologies, those that reduce the negative environmental impact of economic activity by making it more competitive, efficient, sustainable and profitable. Future prospection analysis indicates that Basque companies are well positioned in some of the technologies which are going to drive the clean technologies market in the coming years, such as energy efficiency and clean energy, sustainable mobility and eco-design in equipment.

REFERENCE POLE

“The Global Cleantech Innovation Index 2012”, drawn up by the Cleantech Group and WWF, shows that global innovation in this sector is led by Denmark, Israel, Sweden and Finland. These four territories have a quite small population and are relatively small in size when compared with the fifth ranked country, the United States. Moreover, it shows a geographical concentration of this industry in Northern Europe and North America. Therefore, the Basque Country stands as a place with exceptional starting conditions to compete and become the reference pole for clean technologies in Southern Europe, at SOUTHERN EUROPE´S CLEANTECH HUB.

Despite being the best-positioned country in Southern Europe, Spain does have some weak points, which are precisely the strengths of the Basque Country, namely a strong entrepreneurial culture, important R&D&I investment intensity (with the goal of making this represent 3% of GDP in 2015) and a solvent financial force, represented by institutions such as Kutxabank or BBVA; venture capital entities such as Seed Capital, Talde, Orza or Ekarpen; without forgetting the funds of large Basque corporations for clean technologies: Iberdrola’s Perseo, Gamesa Venture Capital or Repsol Nuevas Energías. In addition, the Basque Country has a solid industrial fabric with important turnover in “Cleantech” related companies, increasing consumption of renewable energies, as well as a suitable density of the public sector in this field. Therefore, the Basque Country has the capability to be the leading region in Southern Europe in the development, innovation and commercialization of clean technologies, i.e. SOUTHERN EUROPE’S CLEANTECH HUB.

‘OPENTRIC’ COLLABORATION MODEL

Moreover, due to the degree of internationalization of its enterprises, SOUTHERN EUROPE´S CLEANTECH HUB could be a gateway to Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, emerging economies with huge domestic markets which are already demanding solutions in energy efficiency, new materials or waste treatment, among others. It is clear that there are different growth niches, for which initiatives are being outlined that exploit Basque strengths so that the territory is an optimal candidate to lead Southern Europe in clean technologies. To achieve this, Innobasque has followed its own networking-based methodology, “Opentric”, a model OPEN to all relevant players involved in this field and at the same time FOCUSING on opportunities. To implement this, Innobasque has created a collaboration network among political leaders, public authorities and economic players, as well as representatives of the university, research and technological development world, a network which is growing every day.

This has given rise to a committee of experts composed of 19 corporations, prestigious industrial enterprises, R&D centres, investors and technological development support firms: Iberdrola, Gamesa, Repsol, Mondragon Corporación, Idom, Sener, Ormazabal, CAF, Arteche, ZIV, CIE Automotive, Gestamp, Mercedes Benz, Tecnalia, IK4 Research Alliance, Kutxabank, Deloitte, Instituto de Innovación de Ibermática and B+I Strategy. This Committee works in one of the main employment niches with highest potential for the Basque economy, clean technologies, together with investment agents, universities (Mondragon Unibertsitatea, University of Deusto and UPV/EHU) and cutting-edge research centres (CIC Energigune, CIC Biomagune, CIC Microgune, CIC Biogune, CIC Nanogune, BC3, BC and BCAM).

CLEANTECH DAY

As a result, the 1st Cleantech Day was held in the Basque Country in October 2011, attended by 16 international investment funds with a joint portfolio of about 3 billion euros throughout Europe, a first step towards positioning the Basque Country as SOUTHERN EUROPE´S CLEANTECH HUB, a model of collaboration that provides value to its members, creating wealth and employment for the country. This hub is located in a territory particularly oriented towards the development of business opportunities in clean technologies that requires global positioning and balance between private enterprise, the public sector, universities and technology centres.

Cleantech Day was organized by Innobasque, the University of Deusto and Cleantech Group, whose executives, following their visit, were «impressed by the transformation of the Basque Country from an industrial region into an innovation centre». With strong institutional support to develop a high growth clean technologies sector, including a collaborating government, a first-class education system and a vigorous community of start-ups, the region can become a key player in the cleantech market”.

CLEANTECH FORUM EUROPE

Based on these premises, SOUTHERN EUROPE´S CLEANTECH FORUM is presented at the Cleantech Forum Europe, to be held from 16 to 18 April next in Munich, Germany. SOUTHERN EUROPE´S CLEANTECH FORUM is to display its solid reliability and its powerful business, technological and entrepreneurial fabric at this event. Five experts from Iberdrola, Gamesa, Sener, Automotive Intelligence Center y Mondragon Corporación will provide analysis on three areas of expertise: clean and efficient energy, sustainable mobility and eco-design in equipment, as well as new emerging trends. These executives will give insight into strategic projects for the country, which they are taking part in together with other companies, SMEs, entrepreneurs, technology centres and the public sector, such as Bidelek Sareak (smart electricity grids in Bizkaia) or the electric vehicle.

Simultaneously, on a stand, 8 SMEs and start-ups (Efficient Home Energy, Orkli, AB, Urban Intelligent, Optimitive, Zigor Corporación, Fagor Ederlan and Wattio) will show the innovative technological products and services they have developed to managers of large corporations and global investors attending this event for clean technologies.

In addition, two Basque companies whose business is the innovative treatment of wastewater will participate in the «showcase»: Bidatek and HBiO. There, 15 enterprising companies from across Europe will seek funding for innovative projects with high growth potential before an international forum of investors.

And this is only the start. Innobasque and its network of partners linked with clean technologies are already preparing other actions related to this emerging trend worldwide, with clear room for expansion in countries with growing economies, with serious pollution problems due to the excessive growth of their industry and cities, which should be resolved so as to be able to continue competing with guarantees in the global market.