SAN SEBASTIAN DE LA GOMERA, June 10. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Cabildo de La Gomera hosted this Friday the presentation of the results of the pilot test to determine the possibility of promoting the development of space and aeronautical initiatives in the island territory, within the framework of a project promoted by Proexca, the University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, the international company B2Space and the Aerospace and Aeronautical Cluster.
Thus, after the preliminary tests carried out last week in nearby waters with the launch of a helium stratospheric balloon, it was possible to verify the possibilities of the operation on the oceanic platform in the south of the island, from which satellites of up to 100 kilograms of weight.
The president, Casimiro Curbelo, pointed out that although this industry has an insignificant presence in the economic fabric of the Canary Islands, “it is a good opportunity to favor diversification and open up the field of revitalization to areas such as aerospace technology, as proposed by the public company Proexca”.
In this sense, he highlighted the suitability of this project to promote the internationalization of the economy “based on the fiscal singularities that the islands have and the development of companies linked to this sector.”
Likewise, he reiterated that not only has there been talk of a platform for launching satellites, but measures are also included to have spaces for actions with drones, “instruments that allow fighting fires and implementing other services in the field of research”.
In this way, he announced the predisposition of the insular institution to cooperate in the planned measures and lay the foundations for proposals that result in economic diversification.
For his part, Jerónimo Falcón, Proexca’s ‘Project Manager’, emphasized the opportunity that is opening up for the island to be a benchmark in this matter, since in the field of satellite launch territories, the European Union only has the located in French Guiana.
WINDOW TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICA
Thus, he explained that with the technology applied to these space delivery systems “it would be totally respectful of the environment and would mark a milestone, since the strategic location of the Canary Islands and its proximity to Africa opens a window for the development of programs with countries of that continent.
In addition, he highlighted the possibilities of the Canary Islands to attract investments of this type, within the framework of a sector that invoices 14,000 million euros a year in Spain.
“This pandemic has taught us that we cannot depend only on tourism, and we seek to diversify into sectors with high potential and that are based on sustainability,” he said.
During the day, both the president, Casimiro Curbelo, and the ‘Project Manager’ of Proexca, Jerónimo Falcón, participated in a meeting with José Francisco López, professor at the ULPGC and researcher at the University Institute of Applied Microelectronics; José Luis García, president of the Aeronautical and Aerospace Cluster of the Canary Islands; Victor Montero, CEO of B2SPACE; the Minister of the Presidency, Cristina Ventura; and the insular director of Coordination and Support to the President, Gregorio Medina.
