Last year, the port of Barcelona consolidated itself as the most active port in Spain in the export and import of new vehicles, increasing its distance from the second busiest port, which is Vigo.
According to data presented today by the vehicle manufacturers association Anfac, last year the port of Barcelona moved, between exits and entries, 504,015 units, 9% more than last year, while that of Vigo instead reduced by 5%. % transfer, up to 444,442 units.
The Seat factory in Martorell and the Stellantis factory in Vigo only partially explain these figures, since last year the first, which for many years was the largest in Spain and which produced more than 500,000 cars a year, assembled 366,000 units, a figure lower than the 404,000 of the Galician plant and similar to the 365,000 of the Figueruelas plant in Zaragoza, whose exports are distributed among several ports.
After the terminals of Barcelona and Vigo, those with the most movement of new cars last year were those of Valencia, with 411,608 units, Santander, with 287,715 units, Pasaia, with 239,946 units, and Tarragona, with 168,917 units. 121,712 units were moved in the port of Sagunto.
The movement of ports does not depend only on having a large factory nearby. Its competitiveness is also key, although, according to the Anfac report, the one in Barcelona obtains a lower rating from operators than those in Santander, Tarragona and Sagunto, which have the best scores.
These figures appear in the latest annual logistics assessment report presented today by Anfac, which has taken the opportunity to join the CEOE’s complaint that there is a lack of labor in specific activities.
According to him, the problem of a shortage of truck drivers, detected for a long time in Europe, is already having an impact on the transport of cars from Spanish factories, which is why he asks the new Government to expedite visas for foreign workers and allow trucks from Greater volume.
“Today, the situation has not been resolved. We have problems with the absence of drivers,” said the general director of the association, José López-Tafall, during the presentation of the report. From his point of view, the solution consists of allowing trucks “with more mass and dimension” and also “improving visa conditions so that people from other countries can access the profession.”
For Anfac, this issue “is one of the challenges of the Ministry of Transport”, now directed by Óscar Puente, for the next legislature. Logistics and transportation costs, according to the association, are equivalent to about 10% in car manufacturing, a percentage similar to labor. 87% of the production, valued at around 35,000 million euros, is exported to more than a hundred countries.
The lack of labor in specific activities at a time of record Social Security contributors already generated in the previous legislature some discrepancies between the CEOE, which emphasizes this shortage, and the Government and the unions, which attribute it to the low wages.
Anfac estimates that last year 4.6 million cars were transported and that, for this, 230,000 trucks were used. Production increased last year by 5.8% and exports by 2.9%, but nevertheless the association considers that current levels are still relatively low compared to the 5.8 million reached before the pandemic.
The road is the route by which 39.5% of transfers are made, compared to 48.4% by boat and 12.1% by train, where automotive companies also miss some improvements: ” There is a lack of adapted locomotives, drivers and specialized wagons” in this type of transport, he says.
