Valencian government keeps €3m for PowerCo and raises aid to Ford and Stadler in 2026
The Valencian Government's 2026 draft budget sets aside direct grants for PowerCo, Ford, Stadler and Edwards, with Ford as the top recipient at nearly €14 million.
The first budget under President Juanfran Pérez Llorca allocates €3 million to PowerCo — Volkswagen Group's battery subsidiary building the gigafactory in Sagunto — to fund specialist training linked to the forthcoming Campus Battery vocational centre. The figure is unchanged from the previous year.
The biggest increase goes to Ford, receiving nearly €14 million, €5 million more than in 2025, to electrify and modernise the Almussafes plant ahead of production of the new Bronco SUV, now postponed to 2028. Stadler Valencia, a subsidiary of Swiss rail group Stadler Rail — which operates in 23 countries and employs around 13,944 people worldwide — sees its allocation rise to €8.8 million (up from €7.2 million in 2025) to support Citylink and other railcar production in its Valencian plants through 2033.
The budget also includes, for the first time, US medical-technology company Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE: EW), which is building its sixth worldwide heart-valve manufacturing plant in Moncada with an initial €150 million investment and plans to hire up to 1,200 workers; the Valencian Government grants it €1.7 million for worker training and two solar installations. Source: valenciaplaza.com.