Catalonia's strategic visit to Liyang City boosts collaborations with 30 companies in the battery cluster

The Minister for Business and Labour, Miquel Sàmper, has met with about thirty Chinese companies interested in investing in Catalonia. Sàmper is leading an institutional mission this week in China to strengthen trade relations between China and Catalonia further. The mission will focus on promoting the business opportunities offered by Catalonia to encourage the attraction of foreign investment of Chinese origin.

“We are confident that this visit can lead to collaborative projects between Catalan and Chinese companies in the battery industry and other key sectors for the global energy transition”

Miquel Sàmper, Minister for Business and Labour of Catalonia

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Thus, this Wednesday, the Catalan institutional delegation visited Liyang City, which is considered a key cluster in the field of batteries and emerging technologies for energy storage. This region is located between Wuhu and Shangai, cities that will also be visited as part of the agenda of this trip. In addition to companies, the event was also attended by representatives of local authorities from Liyang. In this sense, the city's potential in the field of batteries is aligned with the objectives of deploying the Electric Vehicle Promotion Plan presented by the Catalan Government last February.

During the event, Minister Sàmper explained that "the city of Liyang offers many opportunities for Catalan companies, being one of China's most dynamic regions in the battery sector and sustainable energy technologies. We are confident that this visit can open doors to joint projects between Catalan and Chinese companies in the battery industry and other key sectors for the global energy transition," said the Minister of Business and Labour.

Trade relations between Catalonia and China

In the last five years, foreign investment in Catalonia from China has reached 1,279 million euros, leading to more than 2,300 new jobs, according to Catalonia Trade & Investment data from the Financial Times' DFi Markets. There are currently 200 subsidiaries of Chinese companies established in Catalonia.

On the other hand, Catalan exports to China totaled 1,829 million euros in 2024. More than 1,250 Catalan companies export regularly to the Chinese market, and more than 280 Catalan companies have subsidiaries in China.

Overview of foreign investment in Catalonia attracted by the Government

Concerning the public attraction of foreign investment, in 2024, the Government, through Catalonia Trade & Investment, attracted 106 foreign investment projects that amounted to 1,051 million euros and enabled the creation and maintenance of 8,229 jobs. For the second time, the origin of these investments exceeded 30 different countries, demonstrating Catalonia's capacity to diversify the sources of new projects.

The countries with the highest number of projects are Germany (11% of the total), the United States (9%), France (9%) and China (7%). In fact, 2024 is the year in which the Government has attracted the most Asian projects in the last decade, accounting for more than 20% of the total.

On the other hand, more than half of the total number of projects attracted (52%) are directly linked to digital and green transformations. Of the 106 foreign investment projects that materialized in 2024, 34% are greenfield projects from companies with no previous presence in Catalonia.

Agenda of the institutional mission to China

Until next Thursday, Sàmper will visit various regions of China, including Shanghai, Wuhu, Liyang, Huizhou, Dongguan, and Shenzhen. He will be accompanied by the General Secretary, Pol Gibert, and Jaume Baró, the Secretary of Business and Competitiveness and CEO of Catalonia Trade and Investment. The Catalan delegation also includes Madrona Marcet, the director of the Catalonia Trade & Investment offices in China, and Qiaoshan Xue, the head of the China Desk.

During this institutional trip, it was announced that SMM Information & Technology had chosen Barcelona to host a key congress focused on lithium-ion batteries. This mission, organized by the Catalonia Trade & Investment offices in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, is part of the initiatives promoted by the China Desk, which aims to attract investment projects from Chinese companies in the mobility and semiconductor sectors, among others.