ÁLAVA, A HIGHLY INDUSTRIALISED REGION WITH AN ECONOMY THAT IS OPEN TO THE WORLD
- BASQUE COUNTRY:
- 24,6%
- SPAIN:
- 17,6%
- eu-27:
- 22,8% (Data for 2021)
- basque country:
- 109%
- spain:
- 91%
- eu-27:
- 84%
- basque country:
- 38,3%
- spain:
- 30%
Hub of competitiveness
In an economic fabric of more than 24,000 companies, the map of industrial activity in Álava displays a consolidated pole of competitiveness with a diverse productive fabric of almost 2,000 establishments. Especially influential are the large industrial plants of globally important companies, their qualified value chains, as well as a dynamic group of smaller relevant local industrial companies, some of which are leaders in niche markets on a global level and others of international importance.
With a view to boosting the competitiveness of the region, the business and entrepreneurial fabric of Álava has access to different kinds of funding from the Provincial Council of Álava for the development of their projects. Similarly, companies will be able to receive financial support from the Basque Government and Spri.
Álava is firmly committed to facing the new challenges of the three transitions proposed by the European Union: digital, green and social. Some of the most significant initiatives that have been launched are listed in the Niches of Opportunity section of this website. For more information on Industry 4.0 in Álava, you can also visit the Araba 4.0 platform.
Internationalisation and entrepeneurship
Álava tops the list of Spanish provinces for its per capita value of exports and its business entrepreneurship
Álava is among the top Spanish provinces for its total number of exporting companies, with one of the highest percentages of international companies in relation to its entire productive fabric. The per capita value of exports from Álava is almost four times the national average and twice that of the Basque Country.
The 2020 report on Ecosystems of Impact, provided by ImpactHub, places Álava at the forefront of Spanish entrepreneurship on the basis of over 133 indicators.
BIC Araba (Centro de Empresas e Innovación de Alava, S.A.), the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Álava, and the Álava Emprende platform are benchmarks in the promotion of entrepreneurship in the region.
The green transition
Initiatives of the region’s leading firms
The Mercedes-Benz factory in Vitoria was the first in the world to manufacture an electric commercial vehicle.
The Michelin factory in Vitoria launched its ‘e.Primacy’ model in 2021, the company’s first ecological tyre.
The PepsiCo factory in Álava produced the world’s first Pepsi bottle made from 100% recycled material.
Alava’s multinational Aernnova is immersed in new mobility projects such as the ES16 electric plane model.
The Talgo plant in Rivabellosa will manufacture the first hydrogen train in Spain.