Defence supplier to receive support from Spanish government fund

Spain's state holding company Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales (SEPI) has approved EUR34 million (USD39.4 million) in loans to help troubled aerospace and defence parts supplier Airtificial.

The money is due to come from a support fund for the solvency of strategic companies (apoyo a la solvencia de empresas estratégicas), a rescue fund set up last year by the government for companies seen as important to the country's economy.

SEPI said the move will aid a company that develops robotics and artificial intelligence solutions for the vehicle sector and on civil engineering projects while making components and providing engineering services for the aerospace and defence sector.

Airtificial, which has approximately 800 employees, posted losses of EUR23 million last year, although pre-Covid-19 figures for 2019 were worse still, at nearly EUR35 million.

The government's EUR10 billion rescue fund, launched in July 2020 to help overcome the effects of the pandemic, has so far aided seven companies to the tune of EUR1.34 billion, led by airline Air Europa at EUR475 million.

More than 60 others have made approaches to seek a rescue package, said SEPI, although it acknowledged that some of these had dropped out as being ineligible to meet the terms of the loans.