Vigo Free Trade Consortium is a public institution that has been working since 1947 to encourage international trade and economic development in southern Galicia. From its logistical area, located in the port of Vigo, the consortium oversees a free trade zone with all of its related importation and exportation advantages. As an economic development agency, the consortium is the main developer of business parks in its area of influence. It also provides companies with a whole range of services including: finance, via the capital risk company Vigo Activo; support for entrepreneurs, via business initiative centres and collaboration with the University of Vigo in the form of seed funding; plus financial information required for decision making, via the Ardan business information service.
Some 350 companies currently occupy the different parks developed by the Consortium. In 2010 the Free Trade Zone parks network generated 26.57% of the total wealth of the Vigo Metropolitan Area and 25.56% of all employment in the region. The consortium is currently involved in extending the almost 5 million square metres of land offered and managed in the business parks of Balaídos, Bouzas, A Granxa, Parque Tecnolóxico e Loxístico (PTL) and Porto do Molle, via the new Salvaterra-As Neves Logistic and Industrial Platform (PLISAN) and a new Business park in Vigo.
The consortium is formed by entities such as Vigo City Council, Pontevedra Provincial Council, the Chamber of Commerce, the Harbour Authority and the Spanish State; with the Spanish Cabinet responsible for appointing the Special State Representative proposed by the Department of the Treasury.
The current State Representative, Teresa Pedrosa, presides over the monthly meetings of the executive committee, the body responsible for the management, administration and running of this public institution. The Vigo Mayor's Office is responsible for the chairmanship of the Consortium.
State representatives
Names and dates of the appointment of state tepresentatives in the Vigo Free Trade Zone Consortium: Rafael Portanet Suárez: 22/09/1947. Fernando Alonso Amat: 26/06/1978. Francisco López Peña: 27/01/1989. Pablo Egerique Martínez: 12/07/1996. Francisco López Peña: 7/06/2004. María Teresa Pisano Avello: 30/05/2008. Teresa Pedrosa Silva: 10/02/2012.
History
A major part of Vigo's development has been due to the activities of the Free Trade Zone. The Consortium developed the Balaídos Industrial Estate, where a Citroën Hispania factory was established in the Fifties, which led to the growth of an important car sector in Vigo. It was also responsible for the development of the Valadares Technological Park and the other main operations involving industrial land in the city and surrounding areas, as well as a large urban restoration project, Abrir Vigo al Mar (“Opening Vigo to the sea”). The Consortium established the Galician Sea Museum, which once finished was transferred back to the Galician Regional Government. During its fifty plus years of existence the consortium has played a role of ever-growing importance in the city's financial framework and also in infrastructures, urban planning and support for the entire business process - from entrepreneurs to firmly established industry.
Origins
In 1947, when the decree by which the Spanish Government granted Vigo the right to establish the third Free Trade Zone in Spain (after Barcelona and Cadiz) was published in the State Official Gazette, this news was welcomed with great enthusiasm by local authorities and business organisations, who rightly realised that the advantages this offered in comparison to other cities would drive the economic growth of Vigo.
As Francisco López Peña, State Representative on two separate occasions, explained to University of Vigo students, “When the Free Trade Zone was created, Spain was still in a state of complete self-sufficiency with a completely closed economy. The prohibition on importations had been a huge mistake. Indeed, instead of protecting the country's industry, it resulted in industrial processes being more expensive and effectively prevented the economy from becoming specialised and competitive. However, the Free Trade Zone, allowed companies to be established that took full advantage of the availability of cheap imports and the possibilities for exports. It was a highly significant step for the city, a comparative advantage that permitted the city’s economic expansion”.