Container ships, oil tankers and chemical tankers were built at the mouth of Vigo. Long-ago moments echo with deliveries to Ruiloba and notable milestones like Murmansk, events that reshaped the shipyard landscape as Hijos de J. Barreras and Factorías Vulcano grew beyond their early newspaper pages. For years, the Spanish naval sector and the wider European shipbuilding ecosystem struggled to compete with Asian yards known for lower costs, large-scale production, and aggressive government subsidies. Today the bulk of global orders for containers, bulk carriers, and liquefied natural gas carriers flow to China, South Korea, and Japan, with only a few exceptions. Even so, robust demand persists for European participation in this lucrative market, though more than 90% of active contracts until March 1 have been awarded to Asian shipbuilders, underscoring a widening imbalance in volume and capacity.
Clarksons Research, via the Galician Naval Cluster Association, reports a total contracted fleet of 3,781 vessels. This peak is driven by three forces: high contract values, a growing shift toward alternative propulsion systems, and the dominance of Asian suppliers. Historical data show that shipyards in Asia have not matched such levels of orders relative to overall output. The trend is reinforced by state-backed awarding bodies, such as Cosco Shipping and other carriers within the CSSC umbrella, which link major orders to a handful of leading yards. The European share remains substantial in ownership and financing, with assembly companies from Italy, Greece, Norway and France contributing heavily. Recent examples include a fifteenth Ro Ro order from Grimaldi placed with China Merchants Heavy Industries Jiangsu, a shipyard controlled by the Chinese maritime authorities.
Numerous case studies illustrate the pattern: ships renewed by Naviera Elcano in recent years include bulk carriers and other vessel types, sourced from Chinese or Japanese manufacturers such as Shanhaiguan Shipbuilding Industry and Imabari Shipbuilding. A new development is the rapid entry of a segment that has not previously been a stronghold for the Chinese navy, namely cruise ships. This shift brings European technicians into a niche tide of work that adds to Galician auxiliary activity. In July, the Shanghai Waigaoqiao shipyard is slated to run sea trials for the first ocean liner fully assembled on Chinese soil, signaling a milestone in domestic shipbuilding capacity. This project, known as H1508, stems from a collaboration between the Carnival Company and the CSSC public conglomerate. It is expected to deliver a second unit by 2025 and shows every sign of expansion thereafter.
Back home, Galician naval enterprises benefit from orders placed with Construcciones Navales Paulino Freire and Nodosa, with a notable revival at the former Barreras facilities through nine Armón contracts. Yet the total workload struggles to offset the earlier downturn caused by Barreras and Vulcano facing collapse, and the lack of fresh orders from shipyards like Metalships & Docks, Cardama and Astilleros San Enrique. Workforce data links shipyard activity directly to job levels, with social security figures indicating a decline of more than twelve percentage points over a decade and current employment staying under 5,500 workers.
For a broader look, Cap de Barbaria has been cited as a key project. In Vigo the first electric ferry built in the port completed its sea trials this week. The vessel is 82 meters long, can carry 72 cars, 15 trucks and up to 390 people, and features a bow and stern design aimed at efficient, bidirectional operation. The development showcases how electric propulsion and novel hull forms are reshaping regional fleets and port operations, underscoring a move toward sustainable, low-emission maritime assets.