Navantia Seanergies has launched its activities at Incubazul, the business incubator of the Cádiz Free Trade Zone, with an Open Innovation Day held this Wednesday to strengthen ties between industry, academia and the entrepreneurial ecosystem linked to marine energy and the blue economy. The event marks a further step in the collaboration between the two organisations and in the launch of the company’s permanent space at these facilities.
The event brought together representatives from universities, researchers, lecturers, students, startups and other members of the innovation ecosystem, who had the opportunity to learn about Navantia Seanergies’ challenges and industrial capabilities and explore new avenues for cooperation. The event focused on strategic areas including offshore renewable energy, renewable hydrogen, industrial digitalisation and the sustainable blue economy.
The event was attended by the Director of Navantia Seanergies, Javier Herrador, and Fran González, State Delegate for the Cádiz Free Trade Zone, who highlighted the importance of connecting the knowledge, talent and solutions developed within the innovation ecosystem with the real needs of industry.
The programme included a roundtable moderated by Sara Oliveira, Head of Navantia Seanergies COEX Green Energies, with the participation of Miriam Terceño, Engineering Director at Navantia Seanergies, alongside representatives from Bimovador and Blue Twin, the Loyola Research Institute for Energy, Technology and Sustainability at Loyola University Andalusia, and Digital Shape. During the discussion, participants shared experiences, projects and proposals aimed at facilitating the implementation of innovative solutions in industrial environments.
Bimovador and Blue Twin, specialising in monitoring, is a startup dedicated to the inspection and maintenance of port and subsea infrastructure using digital twins. The project developed by Loyola University Andalusia focuses on autonomous catamarans equipped with sensors for monitoring tasks. Digital Shape, a technology-based company from the University of Cádiz, specialises in 3D design and digitalisation, simulation and advanced manufacturing.
The Navantia Seanergies & Incubazul Ecosystem Open Innovation Day provided an opportunity to move from knowledge sharing towards identifying concrete opportunities for collaboration. Potential areas of cooperation discussed included the development of proofs of concept, pilot projects and other approaches to validating new technologies and accelerating their integration into industrial processes.
An innovation hub in Western Andalusia
This commitment to collaboration will continue beyond the event. Navantia Seanergies has a permanent space in the Incubazul building, where an office serves as the regional innovation hub for Navantia Seanergies COEX Green Energies in Western Andalusia. The space is designed to support the development of joint initiatives related to innovation, knowledge transfer and entrepreneurship in the field of the blue economy.
The office will strengthen Navantia Seanergies’ links with startups, universities and other members of Cádiz’s innovation ecosystem. It will also facilitate the identification of challenges and solutions, support entrepreneurial initiatives and promote projects with applications in the green energy sector.
Navantia Seanergies will act as an anchor company, contributing its sector expertise, technological and industrial capabilities, and experience in renewable energy projects. Incubazul and Blue Core, meanwhile, will help connect the company with the entrepreneurial ecosystem and with incubation, acceleration, training and business advisory programmes.
The event also contributed to fostering a stable collaborative community involving companies, startups, universities and organisations supporting innovation. In this context, the creation of a working group will be promoted to help energise the Incubazul ecosystem and foster the growth of new initiatives related to the blue economy.
The event took place just a few days after the fourth edition of the Blue Zone Forum InnovAzul, organised by the Cádiz Free Trade Zone and the University of Cádiz, which brought together more than 2,000 registered participants around innovation, sustainability and business and professional opportunities in the blue economy. Sara Oliveira, Director of Navantia Seanergies COEX Green Energies, took part in the Blue Women Forum, dedicated to the role of women in the blue economy. The launch of Navantia Seanergies’ activities at Incubazul builds on this commitment to connecting scientific knowledge, talent and industrial capabilities to drive new projects from Cádiz.
Through this initiative, Navantia Seanergies and Navantia Seanergies COEX Green Energies reinforce their commitment to open innovation, knowledge transfer and the creation of partnerships capable of transforming industrial challenges into new technological, business and sustainable development opportunities.
The Blue Core project of the Cádiz Free Trade Zone is 85% co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) under Spain’s 2021-2027 Multi-regional Operational Programme, within Priority P1A of the Viveros 4.0 High-Tech Incubators Programme, aimed at supporting a smart digital transition.