Town planning

Torremolinos chosen for smart city digital twin project

The virtual model will help predict pressure on services, traffic and other challenges

Torremolinos is one of only two municipalities in Malaga province selected for the project. (SUR)

16/09/2026 a las 13:53h.

Torremolinos has been selected by the Spanish public business entity Red.es to develop a virtual digital twin model, allowing officials to simulate scenarios, anticipate problems and test solutions before putting them into practice.

Torremolinos is one of only two municipalities in Malaga province selected under the 2025 smart cities and territories development programme, which aims to promote economic and productive development. A total of 52 projects have been chosen across Spain, including 15 in Andalucía.

The project was designed entirely by the council’s technical staff, drawing on their knowledge of local services and the municipality’s needs.

Mayor Margarita del Cid said the selection demonstrated the “quality of the project” and the council’s ability to develop innovative initiatives and compete in technically demanding national programmes.

Assessing potential impact

The digital twin will use data on how Torremolinos operates to model different situations and assess their potential impact. It could be used to examine how major events affect traffic and mobility, anticipate peaks in demand for public services and determine how best to deploy municipal resources.

The technology is particularly relevant to Torremolinos, where population, mobility and economic activity fluctuate significantly throughout the year due to tourism.

The project has a total budget of 1.93 million euros, 85 per cent of which will be funded through European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), with the town hall contributing the remainder.

The initiative forms part of the smart economy programme, which promotes the use of data and new technologies to improve public services, support economic activity and increase efficiency.

The mayor said, “The digital twin will help Torremolinos prepare for future challenges and improve the way the town is managed. The aim is to move from reacting to problems to having information that helps us prevent them.”

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