Cádiz Free Zone opens the call to access the business acceleration program in Incubazul
The business incubator specializing in the blue economy is financed by European Funds through the Incyde Foundation
It will offer start-ups a comprehensive system that favors the growth and consolidation of those incubated, with the services of Telefónica
The global period to opt for incubation is from February 21 to November 30, although there will be four periods for submitting applications, the first of which closes on March 18
It is an essential requirement that the idea or business project presented be framed in the field of the blue economy, with an innovative technological base.
The blue economy incubator that will be housed in the Base Zone is preparing a floor of the Europa building to be installed until the work on the exterior polygon is completed
The Cádiz Free Zone has opened the call for the presentation of ideas and/or projects that want to be part of the acceleration process of Incubazul, the blue economy incubator that will be housed in the Base Zone, in the outer polygon of the Free Zone, and whose deadline for submitting applications begins on February 21 and will last until November 30, with four different periods (BATCH), the first of which closes on March 18.
The Incubazul High-Tech Incubator is a project that was born thanks to the support of the European Union, which co-finances it, through the INCYDE Foundation, 80% by the ERDF within the 2014-2020 Multi-regional Operational Program within axis 3: Improving the Competitiveness of SMEs, Thematic Objective 3 Improving the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises, and investment priority 3a Fostering entrepreneurship, in particular, facilitating the economic exploitation of new ideas, and promoting the creation of new companies, also through nurseries.
Projects interested in entering Incubazul must be linked to the blue economy sector, a field that encompasses subsectors as diverse as marine bioresources, coastal tourism, short and long-distance maritime navigation, recreational navigation and ports, transport services passenger or freight shipping, fishing, aquaculture, coastal protection, offshore wind energy, monitoring and surveillance, blue biotechnology, desalination, marine aquatic products, marine mineral extraction, ocean renewable energy, etc. In addition to being linked to the blue economy, the initiatives and/or business projects of the candidates must be technologically based and innovative.
It is important to note that the Cádiz Free Trade Zone will have Telefónica for Incubazul, the company awarded the open tender for this purpose, which will put all its potential into the specialized services that will be offered in the incubator and that are aimed at the management and revitalization of the acceleration, mentoring and orientation of the projects that are selected, as well as their participation in the entire selection process, thanks to a list of leading companies and entrepreneurs and their Open Future network. In addition, the Free Trade Zone of Cádiz has the collaboration of the Incyde Foundation.
The Free Trade Zone's blue economy incubator will be housed in the Base Zone, a center for expansion and innovation that will be a benchmark in the capital of Cadiz and will be built in the outer polygon of the Free Trade Zone with recycled shipping containers. Meanwhile, Incubazul will occupy a floor of the Europa building until the work is completed, since the premises it occupied until now in the Melkart building do not have enough space for the development of the process once this call is opened.
Those interested in being incubated in Incubazul can access the information on the Open Future enabled platform through the website www.openfuture.org, where they can also fill out the participation form and include the information and documentation that is required or considered of interest. In addition, those interested can obtain information about the project and how to access it on Incubazul's own website whose address is www.incubazul.es.
Both websites specify the four periods (BATCH) open for the selection of initiatives or projects. The first will close on March 18 and February and March applications will be analyzed; the second BATCH will conclude on June 17 for April, May and June applications; the third BATCH, which will close on September 16, will collect the applications for July, August and September; and the fourth and last will close on November 18 for October and November applications.
The selection criteria will assess the use of technology, prioritizing those that have a differential technology, in addition to the ability to deliver the product or service to the final public. The market potential and the degree of maturation of the project and its viability, among others, will also be positively valued.
Incubazul's business acceleration process is divided into three phases, the first is incubation (pre-seed), in which business initiatives in the incipient phase will be worked on and will have an initial duration of 4 months that may be extended for another 4 months. ; the second, the acceleration (seed and growth), aimed at building the business model and facilitating the necessary conditions to be marketable and whose duration will also be 4 months; and the third is the consolidation phase, a period in which the company is establishing itself in the market and with a maximum duration of 5 years.
