The crisis as an opportunity for the Port of Valencia

The port of Valencia is a key point in Spain's foreign trade and is the fifth busiest port in Europe. It is also the largest in Spain, managed by the Valencia Port Authority, all thanks to its strategic location and area of influence.

Valencia channels traffic of practically any type of merchandise from all sectors of the economy; its main clients include the following sectors: furniture and wood, textiles, footwear, agriculture and food, energy, chemicals, automobiles, machine building, etc.

Valenciaport is a fundamental link in the logistics and supply chain for industrial products, consumer goods and basic necessities that guarantees the correct functioning of companies and the Spanish economy. All the agents, operators, companies and people from the more than 800 companies and public institutions that carry out their activities with and in the port are contributing to this normality in port and logistics work with a commendable professionalism; whether in person and physically or interconnected with the telematic services of the Valencia Port Authority.

It generates a large number of jobs in the port area, with more than 15,000 employees providing services to more than 7,500 ships each year.

Currently, the Port of Valencia offers 13,232 meters of mooring line distributed in fifteen docks and an availability in the area of direct connection by road and rail to national and international networks.

The functioning of the ports has been of vital importance

To address the COVID-19 crisis, they have helped ensure that essential goods such as food or medical supplies, as well as raw materials and manufactured products, reached their intended destinations and health and economic activity was maintained. This was pointed out in the last report of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), which highlighted the role of the port community during the pandemic, and in particular the work of the Valencia Port Authority during it. 

The United Nations agency has highlighted the strategy that Valenciaport has developed from the operational, health, economic and social point of view in order to enhance the activity of the port community to minimize the impact of the COVID-19 on its activity.

The contingency plan for essential and non-essential workers that sought to give continuity to the port activity, the implementation of health and safety protocols, aid to inject liquidity to port companies and reduction of fees, are some of the actions highlighted by the UNCTAD. This information appears in the latest report on Maritime Transport 2020 prepared by this institution, which has analyzed five cases that have faced the challenges and sought answers for maritime transport and trade during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the VPA, the following have participated: Mediterranean Shipping Company; Micronesian Centre for Sustainable Transport; Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority; Panama Canal Authority; and Sailing for Sustainability, Fiji.

Valenciaport moves away from the crisis

Valenciaport has once again set a new historical record: last October it managed 508,177 TEUs (6.1 metre containers, or 20 feet), the highest figure in its entire statistical series. For the second time the figure of 500,000 containers/month was exceeded (the previous one was August with 503,482). But in addition, last October turned out to be the third consecutive month with remarkable growth - in a year marked by the Covid-19 pandemic - both in general traffic measured in tons and in TEUs (increases of 11.25 and 7.73%, respectively). These figures show that Valenciaport is moving away from the commercial crisis generated by the pandemic.

Fewer ships and more containers

So far this year the number of ships that have worked in the terminals of Valenciaport has reached 5,639 units, while in the same period last year 6,650 ships were registered.

The Port of Valencia receives the Eco Valencia, a ship that guarantees zero emissions during the stop at the docks thanks to the electricity stored by lithium batteries that are recharged during navigation and to the photovoltaic panels.

The origin of the port of Valencia began in 1483 when King Ferdinand the Catholic granted Antoni Joan the privilege of building a wooden bridge on the beach of El Grau, the 'Pont de Fusta'.

More than a port

The Port of Valencia consists of two extensions that are Sagunto and Gandía, these are very important for world trade, the port of Sagunto has specialized in the traffic of steel products, this port area is characterized today by its versatility and has opened to new traffic such as natural gas, vehicles, containers and solid bulk.

The Port of Gandía serves a conventional general cargo traffic, with a high degree of specialization in the handling of goods such as: coils and paper pulp, imported wood and agricultural products from the area.

These expansions, linked to the appearance of container traffic in recent years, allow Valenciaport to reach its current position of leadership among the commercial ports of the western Mediterranean.

The location allows it

To be the closest commercial port to the Suez-Gibraltar axis, the route of the main inter-oceanic lines, and a great facility for the concentration and distribution of traffic in the Western Mediterranean.

Likewise, its geostrategic position in the Iberian Peninsula makes it the natural port for inter-oceanic traffic of goods, providing

• Reduced time in land transport.

• Wide possibility for the redistribution of goods with origin and destination in the Peninsula.

The area of direct influence of Valenciaport covers a radius of 350 km, where 51 percent of the Spanish GDP is produced and half of the active population resides.

Valenciaport, in addition to being located in the heart of the Valencian Community, has unbeatable road and rail connections with the center of Spain, making it the natural port of Madrid and one of the essential platforms for the Iberian Peninsula.

As a hub port for the Western Mediterranean, Valenciaport can efficiently distribute goods within a radius of 2,000 km, not only in the southern countries of the European Union but also in North African countries such as Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya, which represent an immense market of 270 million consumers.

Connected to the world

More than 100 regular lines, including those of the main international shipping companies.

Multiple regional connections which provide a great capillarity to the transport of goods through Valenciaport.

Establishing itself as the best and most efficient option at the service of maritime trade in Southern Europe, with connections to more than 1,000 ports around the world.

Port and intermodal infrastructures which allow port activities and the transport of goods to be carried out efficiently and at competitive rates and tariffs.

The port of Valencia in charge of the port authorities

The port services are provided by the private initiative, governed by the principle of free competition, with the exceptions established in the aforementioned regulations, while the commercial services, which are those that do not have the character of port services and are linked to port activity, may be provided by the private initiative and in the case of possible deficiencies of the private initiative, by the Port Authorities themselves, in which case, and in consideration of these services, the corresponding fees will be demanded which will be of the nature of private prices.

The Port Authority of Valencia offers you the Foreland, a tool with which you can find out about and analyze the goods traffic in the ports of Valencia, Sagunto and Gandía.

Many types of services for many types of clients

Pilotage service: Pilotage is understood as the advisory service to masters of ships and floating devices, provided on board, to facilitate their entry and exit to the port and the nautical manoeuvres within the port and the geographical limits of the pilotage area, in safe conditions and under the established terms.

Port tug service: A port tug service is understood to be that whose object is the nautical operation of aiding the manoeuvring of a vessel, called towing, following the instructions of its captain, by means of the aid of another vessel or vessels, called tugs, which provide their motive power or, if applicable, accompany or make them available within the limits of the waters included in the service area of the port.

Mooring and unmooring service: Mooring service is understood to be the service whose purpose is to pick up the mooring lines of a vessel, carry them and attach them to the elements arranged in the docks or moorings for this purpose, following the instructions of the master of the vessel, in the mooring area designated by the Port Authority, and in the order and with the appropriate disposition to facilitate the operations of docking, unmooring and unhooking. Unmooring service is understood to be that whose purpose is to remove a vessel's mooring from the elements to which it is attached, following the sequence and instructions of the captain, and without affecting the mooring conditions of the adjacent vessels.

Passenger embarkation and disembarkation service: This service includes the organization, control and, if applicable, handling of the necessary means to make possible the access of passengers from the maritime station or the dock, to the passenger vessels and vice versa.

Service of loading and unloading of luggage and vehicles in passenger regime: 

The service of loading and unloading of luggage includes the organization, control and if necessary, handling of the means necessary for the reception of the luggage on land, its identification and transfer on board the ship and its placement in the place or places to be established, as well as for the collection of the luggage on board the ship from the place or places to be established, its transfer to land and its delivery to each of the passengers. The service of loading and unloading of vehicles on a passenger basis, includes the organization, control and, if necessary, handling of the necessary means to make possible the transfer of these vehicles, in both directions, between the quay or parking area and the ship.

Reception service for ship-generated waste regulated by Annex I of the MARPOL 73/78 Convention: This service includes the activities of collecting ship-generated waste, which is regulated by Annex I of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as amended by its protocol of 1978, in its current version (MARPOL 73/78) and, where appropriate, the storage, classification and pre-treatment of such waste in the service area of the port, and its transfer to a treatment facility authorized by the competent administration.

Service for the reception of waste generated by ships regulated by Annex V of the MARPOL 73/78 Convention: This service includes the activities of collection of waste generated by ships, which are regulated by Annex V of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships of 1973, as modified by its protocol of 1978, in its current version (MARPOL 73/78) and, if applicable, storage, classification and previous treatment of the same in the service area of the port, and its transfer to a treatment facility authorized by the competent administration.

Service of loading, stowage, unloading and transshipment of goods: 

The activities of loading, stowage, unloading and transfer of goods, which are the object of maritime traffic, and which allow their transfer between ships, or between these and land or other means of transport, are considered to be integrated into this port service. To be considered as activities included in this service, they must be carried out entirely within the service area of the port and have a direct and immediate connection with a specific loading, unloading or transhipment operation of a given vessel.

Everything needed for the goods

The information is structured in relation to the ports of origin or destination of the goods, nations, geographical areas and goods moved by tariff codes or chapters and can be obtained in any of the available metrics: tons, TEUs and number of containers.

Currently, the Port Authority of Valencia has various tools that aim to increase the competitiveness of companies in the Port Community. 

Logistics services, ZAL areas dedicated to the logistics of maritime goods, particularly containerized goods.

Railway services from here you can access the regulations

Port services: Technical-nautical services, Passenger service, Reception service of waste generated by ships, Goods handling service.

ValenciaportPCS: It is a neutral and open electronic platform that allows the intelligent and safe exchange of information between public and private agents in order to improve the competitive position of our Port Community.

The United Nations agency also highlights the role of digitalization of the VPA thanks to tools such as ValenciaportPCS, which facilitate secure access to digital resources and information in real time to the port community operating in Valenciaport. This technological platform has positioned itself as an essential tool for port management during teleworking. Thus, the report points out that the APV's response to this emergency situation allowed the ports it manages to remain fully operational during the pandemic.

The best facilities 

The terminals of the Port of Valencia have already begun their technological adaptation for the use of a new operating system that will make operations safer, smarter and more sustainable...

Aurelio Martínez, President of the Port of Valencia explains that this technological improvement aims to improve connectivity and stopover times in order to become more competitive

The new software is called -NAVIS4- and will be applied to the CSP and APMT terminals. With this new software they will be able to understand and increase the speed of operations, improve customer service and take better advantage of business opportunities.

Historical record of container loading and unloading movements

A total of 8,701 containers loaded and unloaded from a single vessel and in a single stopover. 

This is the new record of movements managed in the Port of Valencia by one ship in one single visit. The figure was reached between the 27th and 30th of last month during the call made by the container ship MSC SIXIN. Specifically, 3,304 unloading containers and 5,397 cargo containers were handled at MSC Terminal Valencia.

International recognition of quality

The Guarantee Seal is an innovative quality seal that is registered and recognised internationally, and is one of the pillars on which the commitment to quality is based, which both Valenciaport and the companies in its Port Community maintain with their clients, who have in it an effective instrument for guaranteeing the quality of their commercial transactions.

The guarantees offered to clients using the ports of Valencia and Sagunto are determined by the Quality Councils, in which all the groups and public bodies operating in each port are represented.

These Councils approve the constitution of working groups that actively improve the operations of each type of traffic and define the guarantees.

Sanitary measures

According to the UNCTAD, the APV distinguished between external and internal operations for which it prepared a contingency plan, differentiating between non-essential workers (more than 200 employees carried out teleworking during the state of alarm) and essential workers. For the latter, a protocol was applied with safety and health measures to continue operating in the Valenciaport facilities, such as the use of personal protection equipment, the way of interacting with other workers or the disinfection of work areas. These instructions were passed on to the personnel of the terminals, stevedores or the ships that operated in the ports.

Yolanda Marin y Enrique González.