Port of Barcelona: rising activity, new investments and cruise terminal reorganisation

The Port of Barcelona is one of the main drivers of the Catalan economy, a source of prosperity and a hub of innovative, sustainable logistics expertise. It is now undertaking a series of strategic projects that will determine its future and its ability to attract investment.

These include the development of the BlueTechPort innovation hub, the new NYK Group vehicle terminal, the expansion of Lidl’s logistics centre in the ZAL, the future Royal Caribbean cruise terminal, the new ferry terminal on the Adossat Wharf, the expansion of Hutchison Ports BEST terminal and various investments in new zero-emission fuels.

At the BEST container terminal, the new expansion will boost storage capacity by 25%. Backed by an investment of €150 million, the facility will feature 34 semi-automated distribution blocks and an additional 1,000 connection points for refrigerated containers.

Meanwhile, a protocol signed between the City Council and the Port will reorganise cruise operations to make them more sustainable. The number of cruise terminals will be reduced from seven to five, and projects will be developed to improve passenger mobility, again with a focus on sustainability. Public–private investment in this area will total €185 million.

These projects and investments are vital, as activity at the Port of Barcelona (exports, imports, cruises, etc.) continues to rise. Both exports and imports showed strong growth up to July, with traffic in the first seven months nearing 41 million tonnes.

Ferries carried 924,328 passengers (+0.2%), including a 0.6% increase on services with the Balearic Islands. In the cruise sector, Barcelona continues to lead Europe, with 2.1 million cruise passenger movements recorded at the Port in the first seven months of the year.