The Ministry of Industry continues to advance in the formula to distribute the second call for the Perte of the electric and connected vehicle (VEC) after a first decision that caused tension with the big players in the sector. In this second line of aid, the Spanish Government is already in advanced negotiations with the European Commission to increase the amount of subsidies, on the one hand, and to make them more flexible, on the other. The maximum limit for each company or project will go up to 30%.
There are more than 2,181 million pending to be defined. In the first installment, 793.73 million were granted to ten projects, so more than 70% of Perte will be defined in the coming weeks.
This second distribution will be governed by a change in the state aid regulations that Brussels has introduced as a result of the law to reduce the inflation driven in the United States. In order to try to avoid investment flight, the Commission has changed the rules of the game with the aim that countries can send subsidies to companies in a more agile and direct way.
The negotiation with Brussels to improve aid to the automotive industry was started by Reyes Maroto’s team in Indústria and is being completed by Héctor Gómez’s team. Among the novelties, it is worth noting that the aid received by the projects that are presented will be significantly increased. This is why the central government has managed to extend the maximum aid limits for each company or project by up to 30%.
In this way, in the second delivery of the Perte VEC, the General Regulations for Exemption by Categories (REGC) will be modified so that the transfers are larger. The list drawn up by the Ministry of Industry, and to which La Vanguardia has had access, shows a notable increase in aid in the RGEC. For example, the most abundant is the line of industrial research, with 35 million euros, almost double the initial 20 million. Or the experimental development, which rises to 25 million from the initial 15. The bet for environmental protection will have an allocation of 30 million, in relation to the initial 15, double. The projects that are presented will be able to see these amounts improved, as happened with the first delivery of the Perte, when the aid that was distributed exceeded the items of the REGC.
In addition to this remarkable increase in aid, Spain has managed to close with Brussels several new developments that will affect the second distribution of the Perte de l’automoció. According to industry sources, it will be possible to receive subsidies for more specific projects than those established in the first installment and it will be possible to opt for the funds without the need to associate with medium-sized and small companies present in the production chain. In other words, the Executive contemplates a relaxation of the conditions to which it is necessary to add the already known extension of deadlines so that the projects can be developed until 2028.
In the automotive sector, there are high hopes for the second Perte VEC that the Central Government wants to have defined this summer. The intention is that this new framework will help two giants that were left out of the first installment or that barely received resources, Ford and Stellantis, can be included in the new cast. They would join Volkswagen and Seat in the group of main receivers. Renault, on the other hand, which has opted for hybrids in Spain more than electric ones, could have more difficulties.
The new funds can be used for the arrival of two electric models at the Ford plant in Almussafes in 2026 and for the incorporation of a new electric line at the Stellantis factory in Vigo from the Stella platform, which could later be replicated in the centers of Figueruelas and Madrid.
The idea is that, with the new funds, large companies can individually obtain grants of up to 350 million euros with which to develop projects. The forecast is that Stellantis will aim for around 200 million euros and Ford, around 170 million.
Of the 2,181 million, a large part, nearly 1,000 million, will be dedicated to electric car batteries. Asian investors are invited to enter this part, with Chinese companies such as Byd or Envision already positioned. The Indian giant Tata is also expected to analyze its options in Spain.
At the first call for Perte, the most emblematic project was the battery factory in Sagunto, promoted by Volkswagen and Seat, which will receive public support of 360 million and which foresees a total investment of 3,000 million euros.
Volkswagen has announced that it will mobilize investments of 10,000 million euros with all its initiatives in Spain.
