BARCELONA: The ports of Barcelona and Miami have signed a deal to increase the quantity of cruises and cargo traffic. The agreement looks to exchange information in order to improve the areas of mobility, security, maritime management, and environment. Thanks to this collaboration, Miami, the most important port when it comes to cruises, and Barcelona, Europe’s leading cruise port, will strengthen their ties.
The agreement was signed during the trip of Catalonia’s vice-president and minister of economy, Oriol Junqueras, to the United States, which began on Monday. According to the Catalan delegation, the Spanish consul in Miami tried to interfere with the agenda and the planned official events at the signing of the agreement. Cándido Creis wanted to force the text to include a reference to the “Spanish Kingdom”. However, this reference did not exist in any prior agreements between the two ports, and it was not included in this new one either.
It was the Spanish consul himself who contacted the port of Miami to access the document, which the two CEOs of the Ports, Sixte Cambra, from Barcelona, and Juan Kuryla, from Miami, signed on Tuesday. The interference of the Spanish consul in Miami, Cándido Creis, came as a surprise to those responsible for the Port of Miami, who rejected the change.
“Everyone does what they believe is the right thing to do,” said the Catalan vice-president, Junqueras, who did not want to comment on the Spanish consul’s actions. Junqueras emphasized that the Catalan delegation follows its agenda by contacting entrepreneurs, politicians, and investors indifferent to the Spanish diplomats’ actions. “We have gotten past the impediments. We have met,” he added.
The Catalan companies have until Friday to present their projects. In addition, during this mission they will visit the incubator Hub @ GCT, specialized in smart cities which is the result of a collaboration between companies like GE and Microsoft. The vice-president will visit Catalan companies during his stay in the United States this week.
According to a study from ACCIÓ, the smart cities sector generates 3% of Catalonia’s GDP. In Catalonia there are 270 companies from this sector and they employ 116,163 people. Out of the entire business volume, 6.969 billion euros come from their smart cities related activity.
