Fernando Lopéz Miras, EPP-CoR Group Vice President and President of Murcía announced that the Regional Government of Murcia will offer grants of up to €300,000 to regional SMEs and large companies with production centers in the region, aimed at developing R&D projects related to defence and security technologies. A total of €3 million Will be invested through this measure.
Lopéz Miras, made this announcement during a conference his region is coorganising in Cartagena on Expanding and strengthening the European Naval Defence Industry with non-Traditional Players, in conjunction the Directorate-General for Defense and Space Industry of the European Commission (DG DEFIS), and the European Network of Defence-related Regions (ENDR).
This initiative will help address technological needs and opportunities identified, for example, by the Cartagena Navy, incorporating companies from the Murcia Region and research organizations such as universities and technology centers.
Speaking during the conference López Miras who served as CoR Rapporteur on A strong European defence industry stated, "We are very proud that the European Commission has entrusted us with organizing this event. Cartagena is one of the most strategic locations in Europe, with a naval tradition that has lasted for centuries." For López Miras, this conference presents two opportunities: first, "to reinforce our commitment to this great project of building a cohesive and strong Europe," and second, "the technological transformation" linked to "geopolitical changes that were unthinkable just months ago."
As part of these initiatives, López Miras recalled that "one of the most ambitious and pioneering projects we have undertaken in recent years is Caetra: a truly transformative project, with the region's businesses as its greatest asset. We are talking about SMEs and start-ups that, for example, develop underwater technologies, work on new graphene-based materials to improve protection against munition impacts, or design algorithms for artillery guidance." "Europe must have its own defence industry, and in creating this productive fabric, in Cartagena and the Region of Murcia, we are one step ahead thanks to Caetra," emphasised the President of Mrucia.
