Bilbao, October 30, 2026. The Basque Competition Authority (LEA/AVC) has published its Report on Public Aid in the Basque Country 2026. The document provides a statistical analysis of public aid granted by Euskadi from 2015 to 2025, comparing it with Spain, EU member states, and the United Kingdom.
According to the report, the total amount of public aid granted in Euskadi reached 572.07 million euros in 2025, an increase of 230 million compared to 2024. In relative terms to GDP, this represented 0.55% of GDP in 2025, a significantly higher increase than observed in previous years. Including de minimis aid, the figure would rise to 0.59% of the Basque GDP.
Horizontal aid, which has a lower distorting potential, accounted for 72.67% of the total aid awarded in 2025. It is also noteworthy that sectoral aid experienced a particularly significant increase in Euskadi in 2025, higher than that recorded in previous years.
Regarding areas, the report highlights the high percentage of aid allocated to R&D+i (50%). This is followed by aid for employment (20.6%) and for SMEs, which increased by six points to 16.3%. Aid for the environment and energy efficiency (8.4%) also gained weight in 2025.
Another key finding is the extensive use of subsidies as an aid instrument in Euskadi. While this figure was 76.99% in 2015, it peaked at 96.46% in 2022 before decreasing to 81.39% in 2025. This is followed by fiscal advantages (15.60%) and repayable loans or advances (2.33%).
For comparison with Spain and the EU, the report uses data from 2015-2023. In Euskadi, the primary objective of aid is R&D+i (58.2%), whereas in the EU-27 and Spain, the largest share goes to environmental and energy efficiency objectives (51% and 22%). These differences indicate that Euskadi's aid policy is more focused on strengthening business competitiveness through innovation and labor market support, while Spain and particularly the EU-27 prioritize environmental sustainability and territorial cohesion.
The full report is available at: https://www.competencia.euskadi.eus/contenidos/tramita_informe/920_txostena/es_def/adjuntos/920-informe-ayudas-publicas-.pdf
The Basque Competition Authority is an autonomous body attached to the Department of Finance and Public Administration of the Basque Government, operating with organizational and functional independence within the Basque Country to promote and ensure free competition and market transparency.
