The Barcelona Science Park continues to grow, consolidating its position as a leading international ecosystem in the development of research, innovation and the transfer of knowledge to goods and services that benefit society in the field of Life Sciences. The Park’s good health coincides with Catalonia’s strong position as a Bio-region, attracting increasing numbers of research institutes, companies and scientific talent.

Today the PCB broke its previous occupancy records, with 98% of all fitted out spaces currently occupied. Thanks to positive results over the past two years and a private investor who is due to donate €700,000, the PCB fitted out 300 m2 for five new laboratories last December, each of which are now occupied. By the end of 2019, the Park aims to fit out a further 560 m2 for 10 additional laboratories.

The higher number of laboratories and offices will allow for the arrival of up to 15 new companies from the Life Sciences and Health sectors, adding 100–120 members to the PCB community, which currently comprises over 110 different companies and 2,900 employees.

The PCB’s director Maria Terrades stated that “finding a private investor committed to the health sector was crucial in the Park’s growth, which was needed by the sector. These new spaces will strengthen our existing reference biotechnology ecosystem, also allowing us to welcome new biotechnology and medical technology companies into the PCB community”.

1,000 m2 fitted out over the course of a year

As a result, in the span of a year, the Barcelona Science Park will have fitted out a further 1,000 m2: a surface area similar to that occupied by the PCB-Santander Bioincubator, which was home to companies within the sector from 2007 to 2011. Since it opened, the PCB has only fitted out more square metres over the course of a year on one occasion. This happened in 2012, when it fitted out around 2,400 m2 for Esteve’s Preclinical Discovery and Development Center.

Financial results

The physical expansion of the PCB goes hand-in-hand with its best ever financial results. The Park closed the 2018 fiscal year in the black for the second year running since it opened, recording profits of €1.5 million; earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of €5.7 million; and €19.2 million in turnover. With these results, the Park consolidates the inflexion process which began in 2017: the first fiscal year that closed with positive results.

According to Terrades, “these figures were possible thanks to the trust placed in us by our clients, who want to establish themselves and grow within the Park, and to the efforts made over the years to optimise internal management. The aim for this fiscal year is to maintain the positive trend shown in 2018 and to stabilise profit levels”.

A progressive growth

The Barcelona Science Park has a total constructed surface area of more than 100,000 m2, of which 33 thousand useful square metres are used by clients (22,000 m2 of laboratory space and 11,000 m2 of office space). Of this surface area, 25,500 m2 are fitted out and currently occupied.

The Clúster I, Hélix and Torres R&D&I buildings are completely full. The most recently completed building, the Clúster II—which was completed in 2012—is that which possesses the most space for growth (around 6,500 m2). It has two stories that are yet to be fitted out. The Park also has the Cubo building, initially designed to be an auditorium, which has 1,000 m2 ready to be turned into office spaces. 

► Annual Report 2018  [+]