The Spanish Government Authorizes a €17.2 Million Investment in Photonic Circuit Manufacturer Sparc Through SETT
The Council of Ministers has authorized the Ministry for Digital Transformation and the Civil Service to participate, through the Spanish Agency for Technological Transformation (SETT), in the Galician integrated photonics company Sparc, with a public investment of €17.2 million.
This investment strengthens Spain’s semiconductor technology ecosystem, as Sparc will launch a new facility in Vigo (Pontevedra) dedicated to manufacturing photonic integrated circuits and wafers made of Indium Phosphide (InP), Gallium Arsenide (GaAs), and Gallium Nitride (GaN), with zero or minimal environmental impact.
The transaction contributes to Spain and Europe’s strategic autonomy and represents a strong commitment to innovation in fast-evolving sectors such as automotive, security, communications, quantum computing, consumer electronics, and healthcare.
Currently, Europe accounts for less than 10% of global semiconductor production capacity. Sparc’s new plant will help reduce this production gap and support the European Chips Act’s goal of reaching a 20% global market share by 2030.
The market for photonic circuits is undergoing rapid growth. It is estimated that the wafer industry—currently dominated by silicon—will shift toward photonic semiconductors, which offer higher bandwidth and therefore the ability to process and transfer larger volumes of data. These technologies also enable further miniaturization of chips and end components, while reducing energy consumption.
Sparc was founded in 2022 as a start-up specialized in mass-producing integrated circuits for customers who have their own designs and understand the fabrication process.
The goal of this investment is to build a robust photonics ecosystem in Vigo to meet high demand across the European market. The facility will offer a theoretical production capacity of 20,000 wafers per year and is expected to create around 200 high-value direct jobs, as well as 550 indirect jobs.
The €17.2 million investment, representing a 43.9% equity increase in the company, alongside strategic partners such as tech giant Indra, Vigo Activo, and the Zona Franca Consortium, will have a major impact on talent retention, the application of cutting-edge technologies, and the development of Spain’s SME ecosystem.
The investment is part of the co-investment model operated by the Spanish Agency for Technological Transformation (SETT), which promotes public-private collaboration in strategic sectors such as advanced technologies.
SETT’s participation is part of the PERTE Chip initiative, aimed at boosting Spain’s microelectronics and semiconductor design and production capabilities. Implementing the PERTE Chip fund—outlined in the Spanish Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan—is among SETT’s core responsibilities. The agency also manages two other financial instruments to strengthen Spain’s tech entrepreneurship ecosystem: Next Tech, focused on disruptive technologies, and the Spain Audiovisual Hub, which supports digital transformation in the audiovisual sector.
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