The ICAMCyL will carry out a strategic plan for the Bierzo

The ICAMCyL (International Centre for Advanced Materials and Raw Materials of Castile and León) is a non-profit foundation dedicated to research and innovation, created by the main industries of Castile and León in the automotive sectors, the manufacture, advanced materials, engineering, mining and processing of raw materials. It is a competence centre with the aim of aligning and working on the community’s smart specialisation strategy (RIS3).

The Foundation was born as part of the response to something very important in Europe, the smart specialisation of the regions. Castilla y León is a region rich in endogenous resources, minerals, and in the Bierzo is part of the mining potential of the region. Despite the fact that many coal mines are currently closed, there are many other mines containing various materials which, although not currently used, can be recovered with nanotechnology or advanced technologies.  The same technology could also take advantage of what is available in closed farms and in garbage dumps. And not just coal, but critical materials-which are not abundant-such as tungsten, niobium, tantalum, rhodium, osmium... This exploitation of the different minerals would be what is called sustainable mining.

Sustainable mining exploits a resource but works in parallel on restoration. As it opens it is working, with different technologies, such as cleaning with technosols, with modified crops such as bioalgae, which for example can clean heavy materials, and all without generating garbage. 

Because what the mining industry has to spare goes well with another industry like construction. In this process of transformation technology is needed and it is at this point that ICAMyL takes position since, some of its objectives are to boost the circular economy, not only in mining, but in energy, in materials, in production processes, and generally through circles that are called 'industrial symbiosis'.

In this dynamic, a Strategic Plan for the Bierzo will be drafted and an office will be opened in Ponferrada.From ICAMCyL, we want, through our momentum and capabilities, to position ideas in Europe. Start working the pillar of reconstruction through innovation and coaching.

In three years ICAMCyL has brought 14 international projects, their total value has been 40 million euros, of which in ICAMCyL have remained three million for research.

The main focus is to attract attention to the Bierzo to explain its problems and see how we can provide solutions through funds, synergies, attracting companies... 

Since ICAMCyL we have positioned Castile and León in two, one that has to do with the new mining regions and the other with advanced materials for batteries. We also drive at European level in sustainable mobility.

In addition, we work in clusters and business promotion. ICAMCyL will manage four million euros in aid to Community SMEs as coordinator of the European project H2020 MINE.THE.GAP.  These four million will be distributed in innovation bonds.