The President of the Junta de Andalucía, Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla, and the acting Rector of the University of Cádiz, Francisco Piniella, alongside the Mayor of Algeciras, José Ignacio Landaluce, and the President of the Bahía de Algeciras Port Authority, Gerardo Landaluce, have inaugurated the new UCA-SEA Innovation Center building, part of the Lago Marítimo project in Algeciras.
Located on Port of Algeciras grounds, the project received €4.5 million in funding from European funds managed by the regional government and is part of a major urban transformation initiative for the city.
The event was attended by the Andalusian Minister of Universities, Research, and Innovation, José Carlos Gómez; the President of the Provincial Council of Cádiz, Almudena Martínez; the Director General of Research Planning for the Junta de Andalucía, Mª del Mar Cerbán; the Delegate of the Andalusian Government, Mercedes Colombo; the President of Puertos del Estado, Álvaro Rodríguez; the Deputy Delegate of the Junta de Andalucía in Campo de Gibraltar, Francisco Javier Rodríguez; the acting Vice Chancellor for Digitalization and Infrastructure at UCA, Carlos Rioja; as well as representatives of the university community and the socio-economic environment of Campo de Gibraltar.

Francisco Piniella highlighted the significance of this infrastructure for the region, emphasizing “the strategic and shared goal of joining forces, purposes, and resources around a single project to transform the city of Algeciras.” He noted that it is the first building to be constructed and “to open its doors as part of the exciting and ambitious Lago Marítimo de Algeciras project.”
The acting Rector of UCA congratulated all the administrations involved, stating, “Building an innovation center on port land with European funds has not been easy. The achievement is collective.”
Finally, he welcomed “a building filled with light, activity, projects, and future — the best future for this city and this region, tied to knowledge and its university, the sea, and the port. A port city and a university city.”

Juanma Moreno stated that the building embodies “intelligence and innovation” and highlighted the “positive interaction between the port, the university, and the city.” The President of the Junta de Andalucía affirmed that the major integration and transformation project of the Lago Marítimo, aimed at social and economic growth, reinforces Algeciras as “a university city.” He reiterated that research “is the path to gaining competitive advantages” in key areas such as computational instrumentation, industrial electronics, sustainable electrical technology, thermal engineering, nanotechnology, and transportation. He concluded by celebrating the ITI of Cádiz, describing this center as “long-awaited, with an investment of approximately €4.5 million in European funds, for which we should all congratulate ourselves for bringing this great project to fruition.”.José Ignacio Landaluce expressed gratitude to Francisco Piniella for his work, saying: “I always see you in your double or even triple role, adept at navigating the Strait and understanding our idiosyncrasies, as a true captain of this ship that is the University of Cádiz.” The Mayor of Algeciras recognized the collaborative effort of all the institutions involved, stating: “We didn’t just want to receive but also to give… We aspired to create equality among equals.” He reaffirmed Algeciras’ and its Bay’s academic vocation, emphasizing that this building will serve as a forum for exchange between academia, research, and professional sectors. Gerardo Landaluce noted that the event reflects a shared goal of “modernity, integration, cooperation, and commitment”. He described Lago Marítimo, as an “ambitious project” for the comprehensive transformation of the maritime and urban waterfront, incorporating the University of Cádiz as “an exceptional partner that enhances the project’s values in applied research, knowledge generation, and its transfer to businesses and society.” He acknowledged the challenges and resistance they faced during the project’s development but emphasized that “together, with true team spirit, political leaders, and especially technical experts, we overcame them.”
This new innovation and transfer center, focused on marine and maritime-related areas of knowledge, already houses many of the University of Cádiz’s research groups from the Algeciras Campus, the Vice-Rectorate of the Algeciras Campus, as well as various services related to entrepreneurship, transfer, internationalization, and culture.
On February 7, 2022, the President of the Junta de Andalucía visited the site as construction began. Since then, the University of Cádiz has met project deadlines, adhered to the stringent certification processes required by European institutions, and equipped the laboratories with state-of-the-art scientific infrastructure valued at over €3 million. Among these is a 3D printer capable of producing large metal parts with weldable materials.
Located on land granted by the Bahía de Algeciras Port Authority to the University of Cádiz, the center is designed to provide services to the port logistics and energy sectors. It is also closely aligned with the blue growth and knowledge strategy led by the University of Cádiz across Andalusia.

The objective is to provide an infrastructure for conducting research tailored to the needs of businesses and for accelerating innovative technological entrepreneurial initiatives, with the aim of fostering research and innovation to support the local productive system. With a total built area of 1.895 m ² across its three floors, the building features an innovative and sustainable design in terms of materials and energy consumption, while being seamlessly integrated into its surroundings, It offers three core services: Transfer and Innovation for Businesses, which includes the creation of specialized laboratories Smart Energy Lab, Smart Manufacturing Lab, Smart Cities & Ports Lab, Simulation Lab, Deep Modelling Lab, etc.), Support and Advice for Business Innovation, incorporating the OTRI offices and the European Projects Office of the Vice-Rectorate for Scientific and Technological Policy at UCA, and General Services, ensuring functional independence for the activities undertaken.