Business Environment

There are various factors that aid business development in Gran Canaria: the important regional market, influenced by the high demands of tourism, the availability of talented and qualified young people and a competitive supply of spaces and services for the location of business activities.

Importance of the market and local talent


With nearly 850,000 inhabitants, Gran Canaria is a growing market with multiple possibilities. Its good connections with the other islands of the archipelago and the great number of tourists who visit the island are other positive factors to take into account.

The high proportion of well-trained young people constitute one of the island’s greatest assets. This is due to the breadth of the educational opportunities available, up to and including professional and technical training and university studies with a large number opting for technological careers. university studies with a large number opting for technological careers.

Talent Data 2022


153,756

YOUNG POPULATION (15 – 30)

21,509

UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

7,194

STEAM UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

23,960

PROFESSIONAL TRAINING STUDENTS

57

UNIVERSITY DEGREE NUMBER

R&D Resources


Technological park in Gran Canaria (Taliarte)

R&D resources are mostly linked to the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: it has 155 research groups with more than a thousand researchers, spread among eleven research institutes.

Indeed, experimental research centres exist on the island: the Canary Islands Oceanic Platform (PLOCAN) and the Canary Islands Technological Institute (ITC).

The most relevant areas of research are related to IT and communications, marine biotechnology, renewable energy and environmental conservation.

Market Data 2022


852,688

POPULATION IN GRAN CANARIA

2,153,389

POPULATION IN CANARY ISLANDS

4,267,384

TOURIST

32,664

COMPANIES

Location and digital connectivity infrastructures


The island has a wide variety of locations where firms can set up business. The main business areas are at Arinaga, El Goro, Salinetas and El Sebadal, which are at different places on the island and where spaces and industrial, commercial or logistics premises can be found.

The Gran Canaria Technological Park likewise offers different locations with infrastructure adapted to technological and innovative ventures, aimed at start-ups or expanding businesses.

In the city of Las Palmas plenty of offices and co-working spaces can be found and it is here that the principal public offices and some of the foremost firms in the island are located.

Broadband access at more than 10 Mbps is guaranteed in the main urban centres of Gran Canaria. The most important towns have optic fibre into the home (FTTH). Access to ultrafast networks at more than 100 Mbps is offered in the city of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in the various centres of the Technological Park and in the industrial areas.

Industrial Area of Arinaga