The Spanish Government backs a European photonic semiconductor hub in Vigo with a €17.2 million investment in SPARC
About Optica
17 June 2025
The Spanish Government backs a European photonic semiconductor hub in Vigo with a €17.2 million investment in SPARC
The operation, channeled through SETT and the PERTE Chip initiative, enables the development of the first III-V photonic chip manufacturing plant in Spain—a key milestone for technological sovereignty, European strategic autonomy, and dual-use civil-defense capabilities.
Madrid, June 17, 2025. The Council of Ministers has approved a €17.2 million investment in the Galician tech company SPARC Foundry, specialized in integrated photonics, through the Spanish Agency for Technological Transformation (SETT), as part of the Strategic Project for Economic Recovery and Transformation (PERTE Chip) focused on microelectronics and semiconductors.
This contribution, which accounts for 43.9% of the company’s capital increase, will allow SPARC to accelerate the launch of its photonic semiconductor manufacturing facility at the Valladares Technology Park (Vigo), which will include a state-of-the-art cleanroom. The facility will be the first of its kind in Europe to produce 20,000 wafers annually using III-V materials such as indium phosphide (InP), gallium arsenide (GaAs), and gallium nitride (GaN)—critical for high-demand tech sectors. SPARC also plans to establish a technology transfer center and a training center.
SPARC is born under a “one-stop-shop” model and will operate as a pure-play foundry, focused on manufacturing photonic integrated circuit (PIC) wafers for customers with deep process knowledge. The project is expected to create 200 highly skilled direct jobs and 550 indirect ones, boosting a technological ecosystem in Galicia with regional and national impact, and attracting multinational companies seeking advanced production capabilities in Europe.
The photonic chips produced by SPARC will be essential for applications in telecommunications, automotive, quantum computing, medical technology, consumer electronics, and defense. This technology enables higher bandwidth, energy efficiency, and miniaturization—meeting the latest industrial demands. The project also contributes to the development of dual-use technologies with both civil and military applications, aligned with the European Defence Industrial Strategy (EDIS) and the EU Defence Action Plan.
SPARC contributes to the goals of the European Chips Act
Today, Europe accounts for less than 10% of the world’s semiconductor manufacturing capacity—and even less in III-V photonic technologies. SPARC’s plant will help close this gap and support the European Chips Act goal of reaching a 20% global share by 2030.
Backed by partners such as Indra, Vigo Activo, and the Vigo Free Trade Zone Consortium, SPARC positions itself as a strategic node in Europe’s technological reindustrialization. This investment is part of the public-private co-investment model led by SETT in strategic sectors such as advanced digital technologies.
SPARC CEO Francisco Díaz-Otero emphasized: “This investment marks a turning point for the photonics industry in Spain and Europe. We are not only accelerating production capacity but placing Vigo at the heart of a European ecosystem of innovation and technology transfer with global impact. SPARC is strategic technology—we are here to meet market demands, attract talent and international investment, and generate high-skilled employment.”