• 3 min de lectura
• 3 min de lectura
The president of the Port Authority of Castellón, Rubén Ibáñez, participated today in Teruel in the panel discussion ' Ports, logistics platforms and multimodality' within the framework of the conference 'The Hour of the Cantabrian-Mediterranean Corridor'. During his speech, he advocated for the urgent need to provide the railway axis with maximum connectivity to consolidate PortCastelló as a major strategic logistics platform and the "natural outlet to the sea" for the Aragonese economy.
Rubén Ibáñez explained that currently, PortCastelló's direct hinterland covers 375 kilometers and 6 provinces, representing an environment of 10.1% of Spanish GDP. "With the completion of the Cantabrian-Mediterranean corridor, the Port of Castellón will cover a radius of 600 kilometers and 26 provinces, which means reaching 46.7% of national GDP."
The president assured that "for the Port of Castellón, connectivity is fundamental, both for the competitiveness of the companies we serve and for the efficiency of the investment itself. There is little point in continuously investing if connectivity does not exist under equal conditions in all sections to compete in a global world." Therefore, he concluded that "with the connectivity between the Comunitat Valenciana and Aragón, Spain is the winner."
Logistical Synergies and Sustainability
Regarding synergies with Aragón, the president recalled that the internal intermodal network being implemented in the Port of Castellón is a design inspired by the PLATEA (Teruel) terminal. "The connection between Teruel and Castellón offers the shortest route to connect Aragonese production with global shipping lines, facilitating the rail transport of goods such as cereals for feed and flour, wood, cement, and the essential clays for the Castellón ceramic industry," he stated.
"Likewise, it opens new competitive windows in the automotive sector, such as the logistics of finished vehicles from the Stellantis plant in Figueruelas or the electric battery value chain."
Finally, Rubén Ibáñez framed the demand for the Cantabrian-Mediterranean corridor within the European decarbonization strategy: "The cost of non-connectivity clashes with the sustainability objectives of the European Union. The aim is to shift cargo from road to rail. We are not only talking about logistical aspects but also environmental sustainability."
Assumption of Investment Effort and Quantitative Leap in GDP
The president also referred to the scale jump that the completion of the southern railway accesses to the Port of Castellón and the commissioning of the Port of Castellón Intermodal Station —scheduled for June 2027 and subject to the execution of works by ADIF— will entail.
The panel discussion also included the participation of the Head of Port Planning of the Port Authority of Valencia, María Guerra, and the Managing Director of Aragón Plataforma Logística (APL), Pedro Sas. The meeting concluded with the reading of the 'Declaration of Teruel' and the closing by the President of the Government of Aragón, Jorge Azcón.
