British company OQC chooses Barcelona to open southern Europe’s largest quantum computing center with more than 200 employees

The British company Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC) has chosen Barcelona to locate its new quantum computing center, the largest facility of its kind in southern Europe. This highly strategic project will represent an investment of €92 million and the creation of 210 jobs over the next five years. 

It will be OQC’s first facility in the European Union and the company’s first development and manufacturing center worldwide. The announcement was made by the CEO of Oxford Quantum Circuits, Gerald Mullally, during an event at the Palau de la Generalitat de Catalunya led by the President of the Government of Catalonia, Salvador Illa. 

The presentation of the project was also attended by Barcelona City Council's Deputy Mayor for Economy, Housing, Finance and Tourism, Jordi Valls; the President and CEO of Cofides, Ángela Pérez; and a representative of the Executive Committee of Barcelona Global, Josep Lluís Sanfeliu.

“Barcelona is our preferred location because it offers the best balance of talent, ecosystem, and international connectivity”

Gerald Mullally, CEO of OQC

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The new headquarters in the Catalan capital, named the OQC Global Quantum Development & Manufacturing Centre, will be dedicated to the design, development, and manufacturing of next-generation quantum computers, with applications in fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), finance, healthcare, and energy. 

The facility will include laboratory space, offices, and a technical assembly and integration area to carry out applied R&D, industrialization, systems integration, and quantum engineering testing activities.

From Oxford spin-off to Barcelona-based quantum manufacturing centre

OQC’s investment project, led by a company that originated as a spin-off of the University of Oxford, strengthens Barcelona and Catalonia’s position as strategic players within Europe’s quantum and innovation ecosystem. The opening of the new center will contribute to attracting high-value talent and technology, consolidating the region as a leading destination for strategic technology projects and reinforcing its participation in a sector that is critical to European competitiveness and technological sovereignty.

To establish this new center in Catalonia, OQC has received coordinated support from the Government of Catalonia through ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment, the agency for business growth of the Ministry for Business and Labour; the Spanish government through the Coinvestment Fund (FOCO), an instrument of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) managed by COFIDES on behalf of the Secretary of State for Trade to attract investment in innovative projects in Spain; Barcelona City Council through the Barcelona Investment Office; and Barcelona & Partners, the investment attraction and strategic projects agency of Barcelona Global.

A strategic project for Europe

Oxford Quantum Circuits, forecasted to begin operations in Barcelona during the fourth quarter of 2026, recently closed a Series C funding round of nearly €300 million, the largest round of its kind completed by a quantum technology company in Europe. The transaction included participation from COFIDES, the public-private investment manager, which invested a total of €46 million through the Coinvestment Fund (FOCO).

Speaking at the event, the President of the Government of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, emphasized the power of collaboration, stating that “when Catalonia sets its mind to something and we work together, we are unstoppable.”

Illa also reaffirmed that Catalonia and Barcelona are “deeply committed to Europe,” highlighting the continent’s strengths in science and innovation. “Europe has excellent scientists, it has outstanding talent,” he said, adding that “we must work in support of a European way of life that generates prosperity.” 

During his address, the Catalan president stressed the importance of “collaboration between public administrations and the private sector,” describing it as a proven formula for success. He argued that partnerships between institutions and businesses are key to attracting investment, generating opportunities, and ensuring that economic growth translates into broader social benefits.

According to OQC Chief Executive Officer Gerald Mullally, “Barcelona is our preferred location because it offers the best balance of talent, ecosystem, and international connectivity.” In this regard, Mullally added that “the launch of our Global Quantum Development & Manufacturing Centre in Barcelona reflects our ambition to build the quantum infrastructure that advanced economies will require in the years ahead.”

According to Spain’s First Deputy Prime Minister, Carlos Cuerpo, “OQC’s decision to choose Barcelona demonstrates that Spain is becoming a hub for quantum technologies and is already a well-established European destination for high-value-added technology investments. Its arrival strengthens our productive base by creating highly skilled, well-paid jobs and contributes to the structural modernization of the Spanish economy, confirming that quantum computing is one of the sectors in which Spain can also compete at the forefront of international technological innovation.”

Ángela Pérez, President and Chief Executive Officer of COFIDES, highlighted the role of the Coinvestment Fund as an “instrument to attract capital and invest in strategic projects such as OQC’s, which strengthen Spain’s position in cutting-edge technology sectors and contribute to the development of industrial and technological capabilities in Catalonia”.

Josep Lluís Sanfeliu, member of the Executive Committee of Barcelona Global, said that “Barcelona Global focuses on talent, while Barcelona & Partners focuses on attracting transformative projects to our city, with an eye on the future and actively seeking opportunities for future generations in strategic sectors.”

He added that “OQC’s arrival represents a major milestone in starting to build Europe’s deep-tech and quantum computing ecosystem from Barcelona, leveraging the city’s strengths in research and innovation.”

OQC, an international benchmark in quantum technology

Oxford Quantum Circuits is a British quantum computing company developing superconducting quantum computers. It has been a pioneer in deploying quantum systems in data centers and has built a name for itself as Europe’s first provider of Quantum Computing as a Service (QCaaS). Through this business model, users can remotely access quantum computers, thus helping expand their use and accessibility.

Founded in 2017, OQC is headquartered in Reading in Berkshire in the UK, and has an international presence in the United States, where it operates a commercial subsidiary and a quantum AI data center, and in Japan, where it maintains both a commercial subsidiary and a colocation data center. Altogether, the company employs 150 people globally.