11 September 2026

AI in Catalonia: four data centres in Anoia, a grant that has already closed and an AI gigafactory on the Ebro

This is the first of a fortnightly review of what is happening with artificial intelligence in Catalonia, seen from the point of view of a small business or a self-employed person who has to decide whether what is in the papers affects them or not. Let us start with what is closest.

Four data centres planned between Òdena and Jorba

The Catalan Government has placed Anoia among the seven hubs where it wants to concentrate the country's new data centres, alongside Parc de l'Alba, Sant Adrià del Besòs, the southern metropolitan area, Tarragona, Lleida and Terres de l'Ebre. In total it has identified 26 potential private projects across Catalonia, adding up to close to 2,000 MW of capacity. Anoia accounts for four of them — the third-largest volume, after Vallès Occidental and Barcelonès — three in the municipality of Òdena and one in Jorba.

For a project to be declared strategic, the Government requires at least 20 MW of capacity, two full-time jobs per million euros invested and compliance with the European Code of Conduct for data centres. On the other side are organisations such as Aigua és Vida and the campaign against mega data centres, which call for a moratorium on anything above 5 MW until there is transparency about water and electricity consumption. Both things are true at once: it is investment and it is consumption.

What it means for you

Nothing has been built yet, and the Government itself talks about horizons between 2030 and 2035. What does affect you directly, if you are in Òdena or Jorba, is urban planning and power lines: watch the municipal notices and public consultation periods, which are the only window for submitting objections. And if someone comes to sell you AI services "because there will be a data centre next door", be sceptical: one thing does not lead to the other.

The ACCIÓ voucher for adopting AI: €8,000, and already closed

The ACCIÓ AI adoption vouchers were open from 15 May to 30 July 2026. The maximum amount was €8,000, with a total budget of €400,000 for this line. They do not pay for implementing anything: they pay for a diagnosis carried out by an ACCIÓ-accredited adviser, to identify which AI solutions make sense, what data you have and what it would cost to build.

The small print matters: companies with more than 10 employees, at least two years old, in sectors considered priorities (agri-food, automotive and mobility, digital, renewables, manufacturing, health and biomedicine). Sole traders were not eligible.

What it means for you

If you are self-employed or fewer than ten people, this grant was not for you. It is worth knowing, because some people sell "the Generalitat pays for it" without having read the rules. For the next call: it opened in May, it is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis and it runs out quickly. Whoever has it ready in May gets there; whoever starts in June does not.

A European AI gigafactory based in Móra la Nova

A consortium made up of the Spanish Government, the Generalitat, Banco Santander, ACS, Telefónica and Multiverse Computing is preparing a bid of between €4 and €5 billion to host one of the seven AI gigafactories the European Commission wants to select. It would have a dual site: Móra la Nova and San Fernando de Henares. The Spanish Government has authorised €719 million through SETT, and in August Brussels gave the green light to the joint venture. Bids can be submitted until 12 November and the Commission expects to decide in early 2027.

What it means for you

In the short term, nothing, and it is better to say so clearly. Even if the bid wins, the facility would not start operating — and only in a first phase — until 2028. What already exists and is accessible today is the Barcelona Supercomputing Center's MareNostrum 5 and its AI factory, covered in the next point.

Two open events this September

On 15 September the FORWARD Summit takes place at the Foment del Treball headquarters (Via Laietana 32, Barcelona), from 9am to 7pm. It includes the Tech Meetings organised by DIH4CAT, Catalonia's digital innovation hub: short meetings between small businesses and technology suppliers. It is a public event and requires prior registration.

On 17 September at 4pm, online and in Catalan, CIDAI runs the masterclass "BSC AI Factory: AI and supercomputing for startups and SMEs". It explains the steps and requirements for requesting access to the computing capacity of the Barcelona Supercomputing Center.

What it means for you

The vast majority of small businesses do not need a supercomputer, and nobody should make you believe otherwise. But it is worth knowing that the public route exists and who manages it, before signing anything with anyone. Both sessions require prior registration: check before planning your day.

And in Anoia?

This issue, the region appears right at the start. Being one of the seven data-centre hubs, with four projects on the table, is the biggest news to reach the Òdena basin in a long time, and it is all still to be decided. And if what you want is to understand what European regulation really requires of you, I explain it in the AI Act in practical terms for small businesses.

Sources

The Government's press release on the 26 data-centre projects and the seven hubs (in Catalan); La Veu de l'Anoia on the four centres between Òdena and Jorba; the objections of Aigua és Vida and the campaign against mega data centres; the rules of the ACCIÓ AI adoption vouchers; ON Economia on the European gigafactory bid; the FORWARD Summit 2026 and the CIDAI masterclass on the BSC AI Factory.