• Life Sciences
Barcelona has valuable ingredients in order to play a relevant role in the life sciences revolution: a strong industry implantation and an excellent network in the fields of research, the development of bio technologies and the provision of health services.
Topics
Genomics
Proteomics
Synthetic DNA
Bioinformatics
Medical Devices
Digital Health
...
  • Life Sciences
Barcelona has valuable ingredients in order to play a relevant role in the life sciences revolution: a strong industry implantation and an excellent network in the fields of research, the development of bio technologies and the provision of health services.
01/
Key Aspects
01/ Key Aspects
Barcelona,
capital of the BioRegion
The BioRegion is the healthcare and life sciences ecosystem in Catalonia, meaning the group of companies, research groups and bodies, hospitals, universities, administrations, researchers and entrepreneurs, innovation and knowledge-transfer support structures working in Catalonia in this strategic sector.

Biocat is the institution that brings together the life sciences and healthcare innovation community in Catalonia. Created in 2006 at the behest of the Government of Catalonia, Biocat’s mission is to maximize the economic and social impact of the life sciences and healthcare innovation of the BioRegion.

Catalonia has unique capacities in genomics and structural biology and stands out in areas like medical chemistry, nanomedicine, omic sciences, bioinformatics and big data. The BioRegion’s capacities in oncology research are particularly noteworthy, covering the whole value chain from basic research, through highly specialized companies, to hospitals, which play a key role in clinical and translational research.
01/ Key Aspects
BioRegion Key Figures

32,240 M€ (2019)
7.3% Catalan GDP
230,000 employees

 

1,200 companies
40 research centres
18 university hospitals
12 universities that offer life sciences studies
3 large scientific infrastructures:
Sincrotó ALBA
Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS)
Centre Nacional d’Anàlisi Genòmica (CNAG-CRG)

 

2 technology centres
14 science and technology parks with activities in life sciences

01/ Key Aspects
Leading edge scientific
& research infrastructure
in genomics
/ Centre Nacional d'Anàlisi Genòmica (CNAG-CRG)
/ Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS)
/ European Genome-phenome Archive
/ Barcelona Clinical Trials Platform
  • Centre Nacional d'Anàlisi Genòmica
    (CNAG-CRG)
Development areas:
DNA Analysis
Long Read Analysis
Transcriptome Analysis
Epigenomic Analysis
3D Genomics
Single Cell Analysis
  • Barcelona Supercomputing Center
    (BSC-CNS)

The BSC-CNS manages the MareNostrum 5, one of the largest high performance supercomputers in Europe with a EU contribution of 100M€.

 

Development areas in Genomics:

/ Algorithms for Genomics Data Compression
/ Cancer Genomics
/ Genetics of Complex Diseases

  • European Genome-phenome Archive
    (EGA)

The EGA is a service for permanent archiving and sharing of all types of personally identifiable genetic and phenotypic data resulting from biomedical research projects. This archive facilitates the responsible use of human genomic data, promotes the use of resources by offering them for research, and guarantees their long-term security and availability.

  • Barcelona Clinical Trials Platform
    (BCTP)

BCTP acts as a network platform of information on clinical trials and as a patient referral network to boost recruitment across administrative barriers in the public health system.

01/ Key Aspects
Genomics Research Institutions

Centre de Regulació Genòmica (CRG)
Centre for Research in Agricultural
Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB)

 

Hospital Clínic de Barcelona
Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS)

 

Hospital Universitari Vall d’Hebron
Vall d’Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR)
Vall d’Hebron Institut d’Oncologia (VHIO)

 

Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge
Institut d’Investigació Biomèdica de Bellvitge (IDIBELL)

01/ Key Aspects
An excellent public healthcare system
The healthcare system in Barcelona region and the excellence of its hospitals are world renowned.
With its extensive coverage of leading public and private hospitals, Barcelona has one of the world’s most effective and high-quality healthcare systems, with accessible care to all residents.
Hospital Clínic de Barcelona
Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron
Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge
Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol
Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau
Hospital del Mar
Hospital Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona
...
01/ Key Aspects
An excellent public healthcare system
The healthcare system in Barcelona region and the excellence of its hospitals are world renowned.
With its extensive coverage of leading public and private hospitals, Barcelona has one of the world’s most effective and high-quality healthcare systems, with accessible care to all residents.
Hospital Clínic de Barcelona
Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron
Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge
Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol
Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau
Hospital del Mar
Hospital Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona
...
01/ Key Aspects
A prominent destination for clinical trials
Quality, safety, fast recruitment of patients, KOLs and competitive costs make the region of Barcelona a location of choice for clinical trials. The Barcelona region is among the top 10 in Europe in terms of participation in clinical trials and among the top 15 in the world; looking at oncology alone, it is in the European Top 5 and the global Top 10. All of the major global pharmaceutical companies have clinical trials underway in the region.
01/ Key Aspects
A prominent destination for clinical trials
Quality, safety, fast recruitment of patients, KOLs and competitive costs make the region of Barcelona a location of choice for clinical trials. The Barcelona region is among the top 10 in Europe in terms of participation in clinical trials and among the top 15 in the world; looking at oncology alone, it is in the European Top 5 and the global Top 10. All of the major global pharmaceutical companies have clinical trials underway in the region.
Number of active clinical trials
(2019)

United States
France
Canada
Spain*
China
Germany
United Kingdom
Italy
South Korea
Netherlands
Belgium
Australia
Barcelona’s region
Switzerland
Denmark
10,690
2,111
1,706
1,697
1,581
1,547
1,314
1,146
865
865
818
790
776
615
575
Number of active clinical trials
per million of habitants
(2019)
Barcelona’s region
Denmark
Switzerland
Belgium
Netherlands
Canada
Spain*
United States
France
Australia
United Kingdom
Italy
Germany
South Korea
China
100.0
98.5
71.8
71.2
49.5
44.9
35.8
32.3
31.3
30.6
19.4
19.0
18.6
16.7
1.1
(*) Spain including Barcelon’as region
Source: Clinicaltrials.gov, SIRIS Academic
Number of active clinical trials
(2019)
United States
France
Canada
Spain*
China
Germany
United Kingdom
Italy
South Korea
Netherlands
Belgium
Australia
Barcelona’s region
Switzerland
Denmark
10,690
2,111
1,706
1,697
1,581
1,547
1,314
1,146
865
865
818
790
776
615
575
Number of active clinical trials
per million of habitants
(2019)
Barcelona’s region
Denmark
Switzerland
Belgium
Netherlands
Canada
Spain*
United States
France
Australia
United Kingdom
Italy
Germany
South Korea
China
100.0
98.5
71.8
71.2
49.5
44.9
35.8
32.3
31.3
30.6
19.4
19.0
18.6
16.7
1.1
(*) Spain including Barcelon’as region
Source: Clinicaltrials.gov, SIRIS Academic
01/ Key Aspects
Strong presence of leading pharma & biotech companies
  • The BioRegion is the birthplace and headquarters of large companies
Almirall
Esteve
Ferrer
Grífols
Bioibèrica
Lacer
Reig Jofre
Uriach
...
  • Global leaders in the sector are also present in the region:
Abbot
Amgen
AstraZeneca
Bayer
Johnson-Johnson
MSD
Novartis
Pfizer
Roche
Sanofi
...
01/ Key Aspects
Strong presence of leading pharma & biotech companies
  • The BioRegion is the birthplace and headquarters of large companies
Almirall
Esteve
Ferrer
Grífols
Bioibèrica
Lacer
Reig Jofre
Uriach
...
  • Global leaders in the sector are also
    present in the region:
Abbot
Amgen
AstraZeneca
Bayer
Johnson-Johnson
MSD
Novartis
Pfizer
Roche
Sanofi
...
02/
Barcelona’s Life Sciences Ecosystem
02/
Barcelona’s Life
Sciences Ecosystem
/ Hospitals & their Research Institutes
Hospital Clínic de Barcelona
Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS)
Fundació Clínic per a la Recerca Biomèdica (FCRB)
Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron
Vall d’Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR)
Vall d’Hebron Institut d’Oncologia (VHIO)
Hospital del Mar
Institut Hospital del Mar d’Investigacions Mèdiques (IMIM)
Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge
Institut d’Investigació Biomèdica de Bellvitge (IDIBELL)
Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol
Institut de Recerca Germans Trias i Pujol (IGTP)
Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau
Institut de Recerca de Sant Pau (IIB Sant Pau)
Hospital Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona
Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu (IRSJD)
Hospital Duran i Reynals
Institut Català d’Oncologia (ICO)
Fundació Institut Guttmann - Hospital de Neurorehabilitació
...
/ Pharma & Biotech Companies
Abbot
Almirall
Amgen
AstraZeneca
Bayer
B.Braun
Boehringer Ingelheim
Bioiberica
Biokit
Chiesi
Esteve
Ferrer
Fresenius Medical Care
Gebro Pharma
Gaes
GE Healthcare
Grifols
Hartmann
Hipra
ISDIN
Johnson-Johnson
Kern Pharma
Lacer
Medtronic
Menarini
Merck
Novartis
Pfizer
Pierre Fabre
Reig Jofre
Roche
Salvat
Sanofi
Siemens Medical Devices
Teladoc Health
Uriach
Werfen
Zimmer
Zoetis
...
/ Research Centres
Centre de Regulació Genòmica (CRG)
Centre Nacional d’Anàlisi Genòmica (CNAG-CRG)
Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB)
Institut de Bioenginyeria de Catalunya (IBEC)
Institut de Biología Molecular de Barcelona (IBMB)
Institut de Recerca contra la Leucèmia Josep Carreras (IJC)
Departament de Ciències Experimentals i de la Salut (DCEXS-UPF)
Institut de Salut Global de Barcelona (ISGlobal)
Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (IBE)
Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina (IBB)
European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL)
Institut de Neurociències (INc)
Institut de Radiofarmàcia Aplicada de Barcelona (IRAB)
Institut de Recerca de la Sida (IrsiCaixa)
Institut de Ciències Fotòniques (ICFO)
Centre Tecnològic de Catalunya (EURECAT)
...
/ Life Science & Technology Infrastructures
Centre Nacional d'Anàlisi Genòmica (CNAG-CRG)
Barcelona Supercomputing Center-Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS)
European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA)
Barcelona Clinical Trials Platform (BCTP)
Sincrotró ALBA
Centre de Visió per Computador (CVC)
...
/ Science & Technology Parks
Parc de Recerca Biomèdica de Barcelona (PRBB)
Parc Científic de Barcelona (PCB)
UAB Research Park
Barcelona Synchrotron Park
...
/ Life Science Universities
Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya
Universitat de Barcelona
...
/ Life Sciences Venture Capital
Alta Life Sciences
Asabys Partners
Caixa Capital Risc
Inveready
Invivo Ventures
Nina Capital
Ysios Capital Partners
...
/ Hubs & Ecosystem Supporters
Biocat
Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST)
Barcelona Health Hub
Barcelona Tech City
Mobile World Capital Barcelona
WeLab
...
03/
European Finance & Programmes
/ European Funding Opportunities
/ Next Generation EU 2021/27
/ Horizon Europe 2021/27
/ Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan
03/
European Finance
& Programmes
/ European Funding Opportunities
/ Next Generation EU 2021/27
/ Horizon Europe 2021/27
/ Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan
Barcelona through its activities and institutions has full access to EU funding instruments.
Next Generation EU (2021-2027)
140 Bn€ (Spain)
Horizon Europe (2021/27)
43.8 Bn€
  • Excellence Science
    25.0 Bn€
  • Innovative Europe
    8.2 Bn€
  • Global Challenges & European industrial competitiveness
    10.6 Bn€
Europe's Beating Cancer Plan
4.0 Bn€
Source: European Commission, Horizon Europe
Barcelona through its activities and institutions has full access to EU funding instruments.


Next Generation EU (2021-2027)
140 Bn€ (Spain)
Horizon Europe (2021/27)
43.8 Bn€
  • Excellence Science
    25.0 Bn€
  • Innovative Europe
    8.2 Bn€
  • Global Challenges & European industrial competitiveness
    10.6 Bn€
Europe's Beating Cancer Plan
4.0 Bn€
Source: European Commission, Horizon Europe
/ European Initiatives
European Genomic Initiative
1+ Million Genomes

With the EU launch of the 1+ Million Genomes initiative involving 24 countries, a framework is being created that will enable linking, access, and analysis of genomic and health data in Europe, both inside and across national boundaries, and with the potential to improve disease prevention, allow for more personalized treatments and provide new impactful research.

To this respect, the Centre de Regulació Genòmica (CRG) is collaborating in the establishment of good practices and quality standards in genome sequencing.
04/
Our Method
Our Method
Our Method
We collaborate with you in three steps:

01 / Opportunity Definition
02 / Project Definition
03 / Project Building
01/ Opportunity Definition
We help you to consider
Barcelona as the place to be.
You share with us your goals, your expansion plans and your needs. We prepare a draft of the possible scenarios to analyze and how the Barcelona & Partners value proposition can help you make the decision.

At the first stage of our relationship, we want to help you navigate through the value proposition of our city, understanding its full potential. We can also help by defining the opportunity: from the analysis of your business objectives to the draft of feasible scenarios.
02/ Project Definition
We collaborate with you in
defining the project.

We understand the importance of a corporate investment operation.

 

We are willing to support in key aspects of the project definition phase:

  • Screening of partnership opportunities with local ecosystem
  • Financing facilities
  • Location analysis
03/ Project Building
We do support you in the
execution of your landing project.
  • Access to a project specific key account manager
  • Liaison with business landing agencies
  • Advice on developing public and private partnerships
  • Enablement of quality service providers
  • Support in sourcing and recruiting top talent
05/
Brochure
Download our Life Sciences Brochure
Download
05/
Brochure
Download our Life Sciences Brochure
Download