From Plaza del Pilar in Zaragoza, Gran Vía de Bilbao is 325 kilometers away; the center of Valencia, 318; the Plaza de Catalunya in Barcelona, 309, and Madrid’s Puerta del Sol, 324. In all cases, can be driven on two-way roads. Zaragoza, fifth Spanish city in number of inhabitants, already close to 700,000, continues to be one of the most unknown provincial capitals in Spain.
While Malaga – the sixth most populated city in the country – has emerged as the fashionable star, making itself known thanks to the marketing work of its mayor, Francisco de la Torre, and the good work of some of its international ambassadors – read the actor Antonio Banderas– and the proximity of the Costa del Sol, Zaragoza’s economic boom has been carried out with little noise and a lot of discretion. They are styles.
To begin with, a little-known example that attracts attention. One of the main public investments that are being made right now in Zaragoza -10.5 million euros- is the expansion of its maritime terminal, co-financed by the European Union. It is no coincidence that, a week ago, the Port of Barcelona together with the Aragón Exterior organization organized an event at the Ibercaja headquarters in Plaza del Paraíso on the new challenges of a sector that is currently experiencing the Red Sea crisis.
Due to its strategic positioning, the Aragonese capital is already becoming the great logistics center of the Peninsula. An operations center that helps you establish a large dry port, with origin and departure of containers; but, at the same time, attract large multinational companies in need of good connections. Zaragoza also has land. Unlike the geographical strangulation suffered by other metropolitan areas such as Barcelona, the orography allows it to grow without difficulties. Another added advantage: the prices, much cheaper -both industrial and residential- than in other parts of Spain.
The development of the maritime terminal is one of the most ambitious public investments in Zaragoza
Business-wise, General Motors’ investment in Figueruelas, which began its Opel production in 1982, was the beginning of the great economic expansion of the region where today companies as different as Amazon, Microsoft and Inditex, among others, have landed. Until that year, the community’s flagship companies were Pikolin, Soláns familyy house. The mattress manufacturer is now run by the third generation and Balay has belonged to the German multinational Bosch since 1989 after being sold by their families. A detail little known beyond Aragon: the Casa de Ganaderos cooperative, made up of 270 members and founded by King James/Jaume I in 1218, is considered the oldest company in Spain. In the financial sector, Aragon can also attest which maintains the headquarters and roots of Ibercaja, founded in 1876, whose foundation is the second in Spain after that of La Caixa.
Related news
Opel continues in Figueruelas thanks to Stellantis and there are many other Aragonese companies that have been placing themselves on the Spanish business map, even worldwide. From the Saica paper company to the Jorge meat group, which was on the cover of ‘assets’, or, as in this week’s issue, Transportes Sesé, one of the brands that do not go unnoticed on Spanish roads.
With the help of El Periódico de Aragón, this week ‘actives’ dedicates a special dossier to analyze the most significant features of the Aragonese economy and business. A diversified community beyond Zaragoza, which concentrates more than half of its inhabitants and where the tourism business coexists – from skiing and Riglos to Albarracín, passing through the privileged Teruel region of Matarraña -, renewable energies and the development of innovative companies like Huesca IriusRiskwhich is outlined in the report dedicated to new entrepreneurs.
2024-02-05 06:06:59
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