Skip to main content
19th to 21st of May 2026
19th, 20th & 21st
MAY 2026

- CONFIRMED DATES -

The Vigo Shipyards Will Build 76 Vessels by 2012 Valued on 3.500 Million Euros

The shipbuilding industry at the seven shipyards of the Vigo Ría and Factoría Naval Marín is living the best moment of its history, as it can be demonstrated by the fact that these workplaces, gather in the Galician Naval Cluster Association (Aclunaga, Spanish acronym), currently have an order book signed for a total of 78 ships, of all types, which will be built by 2012, and that will cost more than 3.500 million euros. After a long term of crisis of the naval sector, with the many vicissitudes derived from the rationalization process, during which a large restructuring was undertaken at facilities, with materials, and within the staff. Said process still remains operative and the shipyards started to experience its great golden age, which allows them to have some resources available that were unthinkable just a few years ago.

It is a great moment for the auxiliary industry, which is receiving a great impulse after experiencing many changes that have transformed it into the authentic leader of the shipbuilding sector, because the shipyards reduced their staff as much as possible and will still reduce it even more in the future.

The main problem is the lack of labour, which is consequence of the rationalization process and the early retirement of the workers. But also for this case there are different solutions currently under study to get out of this tight spot. The training of young people will be the main feature.
The reprivatized shipyard Hijos de J. Barreras is the one that establishes the guidelines at the Vigo Ría, as it has a building level that is incomparable with the other private Spanish shipyards that forces it to find other horizons for the 2013-2020 period, since its activity until 2012 is already booked.

This shipyard currently has an order book with a cost that goes far beyond the 1.500 million euros, with a variety of ships that goes from the traditional ferries to the offshore ships, including container ships and sticking to the seismic ships that represent a great choice for the future.

Factorías Vulcano is located at this same level of relevance, its activity is focus in chemical ships, seismic ships, and supply ships and, for the followings years, it has orders with a value of 750 million euros.
Metalships is immersed in four supply ships for Norway, after it was sold to keep building and repairing. Each one of these vessels will cost 85 million euros.

Freire also works on a high line of production, with tugs, container ships, and oceanographic ships. Its order book has a value of 240 million euros.

The novelties are built at Factoría Naval Marín, after it was purchased by the Daimon group at the beginning of the year. It has an order book with a value of about 350 million euros between the industrial units and the nautical ones, with yachts up to 60 meters long. The shipyard underlines that its contracts mean building a total length of 1, 5 kilometres. (Source: Faro de Vigo).