President of Catalonia visits F4E

The President of Catalonia, Mr José Montilla, made an official visit to the F4E offices on 4th June. The visit, which lasted two hours, saw the presence of 25 press, radio and TV journalists as well as VIPs from Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas (CIEMAT), the EU representation in Barcelona and the Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC).

The official visit started off with a private meeting between the President and the F4E Director. The President also briefly met Spanish-speaking expat staff from various F4E departments. Didier Gambier then welcomed everyone to the event. He stressed how proud F4E is to be located in Barcelona and how fusion technologies and the increase of staff will give opportunities to Catalonian companies.

Afterwards, a presentation about fusion energy and F4E was held in Catalan by F4E staff members Esther Barbero Soto and Ferran Albajar.

The event concluded with President Montilla’s speech: he likened F4E to a centre of excellence which attracts European talent, beneficial to the economy and society in Catalonia. He asserted that the fact Barcelona is hosting a part of the most important science project in the world is a big opportunity for the economic and social level in the region