The Basque Country to be the centre of European industry and SMEs by November 2023

• The Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment, through the SPRI Group, has managed to attract the SME Assembly, the annual conference of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) and organises the Basque Open Industry exhibition event

The Basque Country is to become the centre of European industry and SMEs during the week of 13-17 November 2023 when BEC will host the SME Assembly, the annual conference of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) and in which the Basque Open Industry will be held; an exhibition event that will serve to show Europe the public-private industrial and technological ecosystem of our country.

Aitor Urzelai, CEO of the SPRI Group, collected the baton this morning in Prague from representatives of the European Commission. Thus, the Basque Country has become the official venue for the double event in the European industrial field, with a special focus on SMEs and entrepreneurship.

Basque Open Industry 2023 (13-17 November) will bring together the potential of Basque industry and will serve to give the Basque Country an important international projection. On the one hand, with the SME Assembly (13-15 November), the most important event for SMEs in Europe. On the other hand, with the annual conference of the Europe Enterprise Network-EEN to be held in the same week (15-17 November). EEN brings together more than a thousand European representatives and the Basque Country has been part of this organisation from the very beginning.

The Basque Consortium of the Enterprise Europe Network is led by the SPRI Group. This network, promoted by the European Commission, provides advice and information to SMEs on business opportunities in the European Union in technology transfer processes and facilitates access to European R&D&I financing programmes.

The network connects SMEs with global markets so that they do not depend exclusively on their local environment and gain access to new opportunities. And it helps them adapt to digitalisation and sustainability transformations by gaining the ability to respond to crisis situations.

It is the largest support network for SMEs, with more than 20 years of experience, created for your R&D&I project to grow in Europe.

The SPRI Group, a public body of the Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment, has taken on the coordination of the two international events to be held within the framework of the Basque Open Industry 2023, which aims to provide a showcase of international projection to the most innovative and cutting-edge industry in the Basque Country.