The Council of Ministers last Tuesday, April 15, has approved the Quantum Technologies Strategy for the 2025-2030 periodto which they have endowed with a Budget of 808 million euros. Those responsible for presenting it on Thursday have been the Minister for Digital Transformation and Public Function, Óscar López, and the Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities, Diana Morant.
The planning and deployment of this quantum technologies plan are intended to boost a strategy with a complete vision, with investments aligned with the EU in three areas considered key: computing, communications and sensory.
The budget for the strategy comes from the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) and the recovery, transformation and resilience plan. These two financing lines, according to the Executive, have potential to attract 700 million euros more in public and private investments, which would rise the total plan to 1.5 billion.
In the face of the practical applications of the strategy, government plans are going to foster infrastructure financing, as well as the cases of industrial application use of quantum technologies. Regarding the investment areas, it points to quantum communications, postcussical cryptography and sensory opportunities and metrology due to its proximity to the market and for its dual application in areas such as navigation or defense.
On the other hand, the government also points out that quantum technologies can be used to facilitate the precise planning of electrical networks and reduce dependence on fossil fuels, support the discovery of new drugs, simulate climatic risks to facilitate their management, help create sustainable catalysts or accelerate the development of advanced materials in defense, among other things.
According to Minister Óscar López, the digital transformation in which we are immersed «It promotes quantum technologies that will change the world as we know it. One of them is quantum, where a competition for global leadership begins to intensify. The career for quantum will not be easy, but Spain can and should specialize in concrete sectors, such as quantum communications. A sector that will be transcendental to protect critical environments, such as financial transactions or energy distribution networks«.
For its part, Minister Diana Morant has emphasized that investing in research in quantum technologies, and transferring this knowledge to the industry is to bet on the country’s ability “to lead the disruptive innovations that will be defined in the 21st century. Spain is prepared to absorb this investment intensity and to assume that leadership in the transformation«.
To take advantage of the benefits of quantum technologies, and reduce potential risks, the Executive has established seven priorities with several coordinated initiatives at the interministerial level: enhancing Spanish companies dedicated to quantum technologies; algorithmia and technological convergence between AI and quantum; Spain as a reference in quantum communications; Demonstrate the impact of sensory and quantum metrology, privacy and confidentiality of information in the post -world world; reinforcement of capacities such as infrastructure, research and talent; and development of a solid quantum, coordinated quantum ecosystem and leader in the EU.
As the first initiative that already lands these priorities, the Council of Ministers last week approved the Royal Decree of Creation of the Quantum Communications Hubto which it has allocated 10 million euros of the recovery, transformation and resilience plan. It will promote three lines: development of use cases in this area, promotion of R&D in quantum photonics, and implementation of training initiatives. and dissemination.
The HUBE will encourage quantum through the distribution of investment, allocating more than 2.4 million euros to the Institute of Fotonic Sciences of Catalonia, more than 1.4 million to the Research Group in Information and Quantum Communication of the Polytechnic University of Madrid, 930,000 euros to the Donostia International Physics Center Foundation, or 480,000 euros to the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands.
