On 24 September, the Chamber of Commerce of Seville hosted the event “IFMIF-DONES and Major Industry: Challenges and Opportunities for Andalusian Industry”, bringing together institutional representatives, industry stakeholders, and experts to discuss the strategic role of IFMIF-DONES as a driver of industrial and technological development in Andalusia.

 

Organised by the Chamber of Commerce of Seville in collaboration with the IFMIF-DONES Industry Office, the event provided a valuable forum for dialogue between science, technology, and industry, highlighting the opportunities that one of Europe’s most important scientific infrastructures will offer to companies across the region.

 

The institutional opening session featured Francisco Javier Moreno Muruve, First Vice-President of the Chamber of Commerce of Seville; Loreto del Valle, Director General for Research and Knowledge Transfer; Roberto Álvarez, Head of Innovation and Digital Transformation at the Chamber of Commerce of Granada; and Ana María Marín, Director of the Technical Cabinet of the Director of the Spanish Space Agency (AEE).

 

Representing the IFMIF-DONES Spain Consortium, José Aguilar, Head of the Executive Office, delivered the presentation “IFMIF-DONES: Present, Future and Opportunities for Industry”, outlining the current status of the project, its expected socio-economic impact, and the wide range of opportunities it will create for Andalusian companies in areas such as engineering, advanced systems, industrial manufacturing, and high-value technologies.

 

The programme continued with presentations from Ángel Ibarra, Scientific Director of the Industry Office, and Belén del Cerro, Spanish Industrial Liaison Officer (ILO) for ITER and IFMIF-DONES at CDTI, who discussed the connection between major international scientific projects and industry, emphasizing their role in fostering innovation, competitiveness, and internationalisation.

Further sessions focused on European opportunities for Andalusian companies, as well as procurement, tendering, and funding mechanisms associated with large-scale scientific facilities. These topics were presented by Belén del Cerro and Juan Fernández, Head of Development and Services at the Industry Office.

 

One of the event’s key messages came from the Spanish Space Agency (AEE). During the opening session, Ana María Marín highlighted strong technological synergies between the space sector and large scientific projects such as IFMIF-DONES, stressing that these initiatives go far beyond generating scientific knowledge and serve as powerful engines for competitiveness, investment, high-quality employment, and technological sovereignty.

 

Her intervention underlined the fact that fusion energy and the space sector share a common technological ecosystem built around advanced materials, artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, robotics, and quantum technologies. These are the same enabling technologies that will support both future energy systems and the next generation of satellites and space infrastructure.

 

The IFMIF-DONES Spain Consortium would like to express its sincere gratitude to the Chamber of Commerce of Seville for its commitment and leadership in organising this event, and to the IFMIF-DONES Industry Office for its continued efforts to strengthen the connection between the facility and the industrial sector.

 

A particularly special acknowledgement goes to the Spanish Space Agency (AEE) for its support and active participation. Its involvement clearly demonstrates the importance of promoting strategic partnerships between key industrial sectors and fostering technological synergies that will help position Andalusia as a leading hub for innovation, advanced industry, and major scientific infrastructures.

 

The strong interest shown by participating companies confirms the growing recognition of IFMIF-DONES as a catalyst for new industrial capabilities, business opportunities, and technological development in Andalusia and across Spain.