The Government of Catalonia, through a joint initiative of the Catalan Waste Agency and ACCIÓ, is promoting the creation of a new cluster in the field of waste, the first in this sector in Catalonia. The work of the second phase of development of this initiative has been announced in a virtual meeting that has served to formalize the start of the cluster creation process, which is expected to take place during the year 2021 with an action plan that It will include training activities, internationalization, R&D, promotion of innovation or intercluster actions, among others.

The new cluster brings together all companies in the waste management sector, including the entire value chain

The strategic analysis of the sector, presented during the event, has analyzed a sample of the sector, made up of 693 companies that are dedicated to the field of waste in Catalonia, which have a turnover of almost 10 billion euros and some 41,000 workers. This study of the state of the sector, prepared between the Government of Catalonia and the consulting firm Cluster Development, constitutes the first necessary step to create a cluster.

Regarding their activity, Catalan companies in this field are mostly waste managers (collection, treatment, etc.), but there are also those who specialize in capital goods and treatment technologies, the construction of infrastructure and facilities for management, consulting and engineering, and control and analysis.

A new cluster to make the sector more competitive

The waste sector in Catalonia represents a sufficiently relevant critical mass within the Spanish economic system to consider promoting the establishment of its own cluster. This sector also has a new framework derived from new regulations and public planning, which will force it to make major changes and adaptations in the coming years to achieve the objectives set.

In this sense, the new cluster will bring together all the companies in the waste management sector, including the entire value chain, and which have a registered office or value-added economic activity in Catalonia. The initiative will also work together with environmental agents from the waste sector, both in the field of innovation and research and in the field of training, as is the case of waste-producing companies, associations and unions, apart from the Catalonia’s own Waste Agency. The new cluster is part of the promotion of the circular economy, which promotes, among others, the reduction of waste and the efficient use of resources.

In the coming months, an action plan will be implemented to set up the cluster, and a technical team from ACCIÓ and the Waste Agency of Catalonia will temporarily assume the role of cluster manager. Subsequently, a group of companies will constitute the first board of directors, define their action plan and incorporate the cluster manager. It is a process that begins with public encouragement, but which is subsequently led entirely by the private sector.