The European Investment Bank (EIB) has granted 385 million euros in financing to Indra Group to boost its research, development and innovation activities. This agreement is the largest ever signed by the EIB in Spain to strengthen the European Union’s security and defence capabilities.

The funding will enable the Spanish company to develop cutting-edge technologies in the defence and space industry, from radar to electronic defence, electro-optics, command and control communications, and advanced digitisation technologies. It will also be used to build Torrejón de Ardoz (Madrid) – an integrated technology centre that is part of the Indra Technology Hub and that will be equipped with laboratories and advanced manufacturing technologies to provide services to the defence and space industry.

Competitiveness of European industry
The project presented by Indra Group will contribute to strengthening the competitiveness of European industry and the resilience of the EU aerospace, security and defence supply chain. It will at the same time, contribute to the EIB’s cross-cutting and permanent public policy objective of strengthening European security and defence capabilities, and to its TechEU initiative. It is also compatible with the priorities included in its strategic roadmap for the period 2024-2027 to reinforce the European security and defence industry and accelerate digitalisation and technological innovation.

EIB Group President Nadia Calviño explained that the financing agreement serves “to boost research into and development of cutting-edge technologies. In the current geopolitical context, it is more important than ever to enhance Europe’s security capabilities, with a pan-European approach and strategic projects. Investing in innovation and technology means investing in security. And the EIB’s support is key in enabling companies to develop projects that contribute to the security of all Europeans.”

A critical role in EU security
EIB Vice-President Robert de Groot, who heads up EIB’s security and defence activities, believes that the agreement “will boost the development of innovation and real capabilities in the field of defence and space, which plays a critical role in EU security. The EIB’s support for Indra’s innovation and creation of its Technology Hub will help position Europe at the technological forefront, and to be more resilient and more self-reliant in a changing world.”

Indra Group’s Executive Chairman, Ángel Escribano, celebrated the fact that this funding “boosts our industrial and technological development along the lines of the ‘Leading the Future’ strategic plan in our vision of becoming a key player in the fields of security, defence and aerospace in Europe. The support of this public funding will enable Indra to accelerate the deployment of our industrial and innovation capabilities and to strengthen its leadership in the field of security and defence in the new environment of European sovereignty.”

^{Photo: EIB}