Public research at the Barcelona Science Park reaches a record €84 million
The Biomedical Research Institute was the center that received the most funding.
BarcelonaPacked to capacity for years, the Barcelona Science Park (PCB), part of the University of Barcelona (UB), is enjoying a boom, awaiting the future Hospital Clínic to revitalize the area as the city's main biomedical hub. The companies it houses are growing and attracting more funding, but so are the research centers that conduct research in its laboratories.
The funding raised by its institutes during 2024 reached a new milestone, with €84.6 million, 20.8% more than the previous year. 80% of this figure comes from public funds, although private capital investing in these centers is also growing. "These data demonstrate the great potential of public research in the life sciences, which continues to grow in parallel with companies," said PCB director Maria Terrades.
The Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB) was the center that raised the most funding in the science park, with €31.3 million for research projects, mainly focused on cancer. The Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) followed with €18.8 million. Also notable were the National Center for Genomic Analysis (CNAG), with €8.5 million, and the Institute of Molecular Biology of Barcelona (IBMB-CSIC), with €5.7 million.
Taking into account the investment raised by private companies, with €124.7 million, the total budget for the science park's tenants has risen to €209.3 million, another record. This dynamic fits with that being recorded by the Catalan biotechnology sector as a whole, with 342 million raised during the first half of this year, almost the same figure that was achieved during the whole of 2024.
With an eye on expansion
Founded in 1997, the PCB is awaiting expansion that will allow it to accommodate more companies after running out of vacancies at a time when the sector is expanding and needs more. Covering an area of 100,000 square meters, it houses more than 116 companies and public entities, totaling more than 3,500 employees.
To expand, the science park has a pending development within its facilities. Almost 2,000 square meters will be used for laboratories. In addition, a building located directly across from the PCB, the headquarters of the School of New Interactive Technologies (ENTI), will be demolished, leaving a vacant lot for the construction of a 10,000-square-meter building. This will be where the Institute will be located. Fraunhofer, the first to be built in Spain, as well as IBEC, with which the German institute has partnered.
