Hirugarrena, a new hub for scientific, technological, and digital entrepreneurship launched by the Ministry of Industry, the University of the North of the Basque Country (UPNA), and CEIN, opens its doors
The facility, located in the El Sario building (Pamplona), spans over 1,000 square meters and offers specialized services to entrepreneurs, startups, and the university community.
Mikel Irujo, Regional Minister of Industry and Ecological and Digital Business Transition; Ramón Gonzalo, President of the Public University of Navarra (UPNA); and Uxue Itoiz, Managing Director of the public corporation CEIN, officially opened Hirugarrena this morning—a new space designed to foster entrepreneurship in the scientific, technological, and digital fields in the region. The event was also attended by the Minister of Universities, Innovation, and Digital Transformation, Juan Luis García.
The facility, located on the third floor of the El Sario building in Pamplona / Iruña, is jointly managed by CEIN and the UPNA and provides spaces, programs, and specialized guidance to help set up and launch new business ventures, as well as to support the growth and scaling of emerging companies—whether led by individual entrepreneurs, startups, students, university researchers, or other stakeholders in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Its creation is part of the Tech FabLab project, funded by the Department of Industry and Ecological and Digital Business Transition and Next Generation funds.
The minister emphasized that “in the current context, we have a responsibility to put people first and humanize everything we do. That is what entrepreneurship is all about: the person who puts the economy at the center, working hand in hand with others and their ideas. That is what we must do in Europe and in Navarre: drive projects forward through our entrepreneurial ecosystem, through collective genius.” He added that “Hirugarrena is a place of hope where dreams can be envisioned and turned into reality through projects. A strong industrial ecosystem cannot thrive without entrepreneurship.”
For his part, the university president emphasized that, as part of UPNA’s commitment to entrepreneurship, this space serves as an “opportunity to develop activities for the university community,” highlighting skills training and the creation and launch of knowledge-based companies. “This infrastructure will also provide professional support for the incubation and acceleration phases of companies emerging from within the university,” explained Ramón Gonzalo.
As Itoiz noted, “With this new headquarters, CEIN will have a space to work more closely with the university community and other entrepreneurs. To that end, we have a program designed to provide training and support.” “Since our inception, CEIN has advised on more than 21,000 projects and helped launch some 4,000 companies,” he concluded.
For his part, Councilor García emphasized at the closing of the inaugural event that “Hirugarrena is a strategic tool dedicated to fostering innovation, talent, the strengthening of our business community, and the transfer of knowledge.” “We want the ideas that emerge in classrooms and laboratories to find support, guidance, and real opportunities here to become businesses,” he said.
Services and facilities
Hirugarrena provides training, consulting, mentoring, and specialized pre-acceleration, business acceleration, and scaling programs to help transform technology projects into new companies, as well as to foster the development and growth of innovative startups. The university community also benefits from support and specific programs designed to nurture talent involved in entrepreneurial initiatives.
In terms of infrastructure, Hirugarrena is an innovative and versatile space with 1,280 square meters of usable floor space, divided into a large coworking area and five offices, designed for startups and the pre-incubation of early-stage projects. In total, it features more than 60 workstations, as well as a networking area, a project exhibition hall, six meeting rooms, two training spaces, and a dining area.
Startups interested in setting up operations in Hirigarrena must complete the application form available on the CEIN website, where they can also review the admission criteria.
The launch of Hirugarrena is part of the Tech FabLab project, in which the Government of Navarre is a partner alongside La Rioja, Aragon, Cantabria, Catalonia, and the Valencian Community. This project is part of the RETECH “Digital Entrepreneurship Networks” call for proposals, funded by the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan of the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Administration through Next Generation EU funds.
