The Galician industry of the granite launched yesterday a message of optimism when giving by finalised his process of restructuring and confirm that some companies even have begun to hire personal. It announced it the president of the Cluster of the Granite, Guillermo Pérez Aboy (Levantina), that explained that the sector has known to surpass the collapse of the national demand by the explosion of the real-estate bubble centring in the exports that already reach the volumes before the crisis of 2007. Pérez Aboy, that kept a meeting with the president of the Port authority of Vigo, Ignacio López-Chaves, stood out the logistical advantage that supposes for the industry of the natural stone the vicinity of the Port vigués and that Galicia is the fifth world-wide producer of granite, by behind China, India, Brazil and Italy. López-Chaves confirmed that for the first time the traffic of granite elaborated surpasses to the blocks, so much in volume as in value.

The crisis of the construction forced to the granite industry Galician, centred around the mining basin of Porriño, to readjust  to adapt  to the fall of the national demand, what caused the closing of transformative companies (like Recsa) and also of some quarries. But this stage would be touching to his end thanks to the efforts of the companies in matter of internationalisation. According to the port statistics, in 2013 this industry exported 207.907 tonnes of granite transformed in different by-products, almost the triple that in 2009, with a value of 107 million euros. "We have reached figures before the crisis in monetary value", remarked Pérez Aboy. This aimed that the integration of the granite in Galicia, with the vicinity between mining basins, factories and logistical agents, helped to that the sector resisted better the crisis that others.

The main destinations of the Galician granite are the European countries (50%), followed of the Americans (20%), African (10%) and Asian (10%). The president of the Cluster, that required that more than the half of the granite that elaborates  in Galicia keeps on being national product, ensured that the recovery of the sector has carried to some enclosed quarries during the crisis to schedule his reopening and confirmed that several industries even have gone back to incorporate personal. Signatures like Iberian Granites, for example, expanded his installations the year happened with new looms.

López-Chaves, by his part, stressed the important growth that registered in the first semester of the year the export of granite elaborated, that for the first time surpasses in volume to the one of blocks. Like this, the traffic of granite transformed of January to June reached the 124.784 tonnes, in front of the 94.769 of the stone en bloc. The port manager considered this change as "very important" for incorporating value added to the commodity that handles the port, and aimed that it has been possible thanks to the bet by the "investment and the innovation" of the Galician companies of the sector, that employ to some 5.500 workers.

The main countries of destination are Turkey, Mexico and Saudi Arabia. "We centre us in countries that are growing enough in terms of GDP", indicated Pérez Aboy. This director of Levantina signalled to the Port of Vigo like "referent" in the entrance of granite in Spain and, in this sense, remembered that Galicia already represents 80% of the total of this industry to national level, whereas the terminal viguesa has turned into the "logistical reference" so much of entrance of granite in the rough as of exit of granite elaborated.

Source: Faro de Vigo