Spain launches third round of funding with PERTE

The third funding pot under the subsidy scheme will open early next year. Meanwhile, the Spanish government awarded around 87 million euros to four companies as part of the second tender.

Spain’s government will launch the third tender for its e-mobility funding programme PERTE in early 2024, with a budget of 1.2 billion euros. Industry Minister Héctor Gómez announced this at the second Automotive Meeting Madrid.

“There are many challenges for the sector that we are committed to, leading hand in hand with the sector in the decisions that we hope will be as accurate as possible in this transition process,” the minister told the audience.

Meanwhile, Gómez has provisionally approved seven more projects worth around 87 million euros as part of the current second call for tenders. These are four Stellantis projects to finance the Madrid, Vigo and Zaragoza plants with a total of 63.75 million euros. Lithium Iberia will receive 13.3 million euros to finance a plant to produce lithium hydroxide in Cáceres. 9.5 million euros will go to Hyundai Mobis for a battery production plant in Noáin, and 867,000 euros have been earmarked for Fragnor for a lithium and cobalt recycling project.

A few weeks ago, Spain’s Ministry of Industry cleared the way for subsidies for two Envision and Seat battery plants under the Perte subsidy programme. Envision receives a grant of 200 million euros and a loan of another 100 million euros for its planned battery cell factory in Navalmoral de la Mata. Seat secured 47 million euros in subsidies to build a battery assembly plant at its Martorell plant near Barcelona.

In May, the EU Commission approved the Spanish Perte subsidy scheme under state aid law and thus gave the green light for the programme. According to Brussels, the aid scheme is in line with the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework. The latter had been put in place during the pandemic and was extended due to the consequences of the war in Ukraine.

The subsidy programme can be used by companies that produce batteries, essential battery components or the raw materials needed for them. The second tender ended in mid-September.

forococheselectricos.com, mincotur.gob.es (both in Spanish)