The company Ocean Ecostructures will inaugurate next week the old sheds of the Sant Bertran dock, currently undergoing reconversion into the BlueTechPort, a center that will host companies dedicated to innovation in the so-called blue economy, that related to the sea. Thus, about twenty people will settle in part of the second floor of one of the six warehouses that make up the sheds, the one closest to the Portal de la Pau, the first to be recovered.
This company is dedicated to maritime regeneration and specializes in the consolidation of ecosystems in a short period of time in port and maritime infrastructures through a system of artificial reefs that attract microfauna, which, in turn, facilitates the growth of crustaceans and fish. Thus, ports also become an active part of maritime regeneration. Ocean Ecostructures, among other technical contributions, has developed a robotic method incorporated into the reefs that allows continuous monitoring of the recovery process.
Ocean Ecostructures has been the first company to announce its installation in the old sheds, but, also next week, two more are expected to join this new commitment of the Port of Barcelona, which, thanks to the catalyzing effect of the America's Cup, is investing to position the Catalan capital as a leading hub in Europe for the blue economy.
The BlueTechPort will occupy all six warehouses of these sheds with a total investment of 56 million euros, which will transform this old port facility into a modern building capable of housing startups, innovation hubs, and technology centers in its 25,000 square meters that will be able to employ up to 3,000 people. The objectives of this initiative directed by World Trade Center (WTC), the business complex of the Barcelona dock, are, according to its manager, Carles Anglada, to attract talent, opportunities, and promote the transfer of knowledge, especially between universities and companies. It is not a business incubator, although it will have startup acceleration programs. In short, to contribute to Barcelona being an international benchmark for the blue economy.
In this international positioning strategy, the BlueTechPort joins other initiatives distributed in nearby facilities linked to the port. Among them, the aforementioned WTC, which hosts various companies related to port activity. Pier 01, a technology hub located in the Palau de Mar, next to the Museu d'Història de Catalunya, is also already in operation. There you can find startups, incubators, investors, and other firms dedicated to innovation. The Marine Technology Center is another facility dedicated to marine research and studying coastal dynamics. Finally, Norrsken, a center promoted by the Norwegian foundation of the same name, which has become in just one year the largest technology hub in Europe by incubating impact economy companies. These are the projects with which the port wants to become an international benchmark for innovation in the blue economy, a strategy that Barcelona has embraced. The port currently represents 4.3% of Barcelona's GDP and is, therefore, one of the main companies in the country.
When the BlueTechPort has completed its transformation, it will replace its still port shed appearance with one technically and architecturally adapted for use by companies dedicated to technological innovation, with plenty of natural light and spacious areas that, in addition, favor interaction between the different companies.
One of the great contributions will be an area of 50 linear meters next to the Moll de Barcelona suitable for conducting underwater tests of the different technologies developed in the old sheds. Santiago Roldán, who was president of COOB 92 during the Olympic period, was amazed that in Barcelona, when a work was inaugurated, it immediately filled up. Now, a similar phenomenon is happening with the facilities destined for innovation companies ---not only in the blue economy---, which in recent years are abundant in the city and its metropolitan area. Immediately, at least for now, they fill with activity.
And this must be the legacy of the America's Cup.