The Galician Aeronautical Consortium was created in 2007 to develop a plan for the promotion, growth and consolidation of the aeronautical and space industry in Galicia. It currently has 40 members, including suppliers of the main Spanish and European TIER 1 (the name given to the large top-level tractor companies), as well as aerospace agencies such as the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA. 

What are the actions and projects that the Aeronautics Consortium is currently focusing on?

We are currently focused on the Collaboration Agreement with the Galician Innovation Agency for the creation, implementation and management of the Aerospace Industry Observatory in Galicia, as well as on the European project Poctep Aeroganp. This project consists of the creation of a cross-border research and knowledge transfer centre in the aeronautical and space sector in the Galicia-North Portugal Euroregion. In it, the CAG leads the creation and elaboration of a map of capabilities of the Euroregion. We also participate in trade fairs and events in the sector, carrying out direct and inverse trade missions.

How do you assess the current situation of the Galician aeronautical and aerospace sector? What capacities and strengths does the Community have?

The aeronautical and aerospace sector is currently in very good health and is in full growth, with 1,300 direct jobs, with companies at the forefront of technology, both in the aerostructures segment and in the systems and communications segment. 

In addition, Galicia plays a leading role in the area of unmanned aerial vehicles, led especially by the Aeronautical and Aerospace Pole, located in Rozas, and with companies from all over Galicia.

What is your assessment of the Galician Aerospace Pole in terms of positioning and consolidating the sector?

Very positive, since in Galicia we have a large number of SMEs, and the fact that they can count on an Aerospace Pole that allows and facilitates contact with large companies in the sector when it comes to winning contracts, such as those arising from the Civil UAVs Initiative, is very beneficial for the Galician business fabric. 

On the other hand, large tractor companies from outside Galicia are also able to generate and consolidate their business in our territory, generating a large number of skilled jobs in the community.

What is the role of the Aerospace Industry Observatory of Galicia, which you carry out in collaboration with the Xunta de Galicia?

The Aerospace Industry Observatory of Galicia aims to be a centre of reference at national and international level in the development and dissemination of scientific, economic, statistical and perspective studies of the aerospace sector. We are currently immersed in new studies to be published this year, such as the updates of previous studies ("Financing of R&D in the UAVS sector" and "Report on the annual accounts of the sector"), as well as in the new studies: "Programmes and investments in dual technologies in UAVs" and "Present and regulatory future of UAVs: Rozas Sandbox Proposal".

In addition, in April we will be present at the Xponential 2024 San Diego fair in the United States. It will be the second time that we are representing the Observatory at this fair, which highlights the important presence of Galician companies participating in the Civil Uavs Initiative, being an autonomous community of reference for the sector in the United States.

You are also secretary general of the Association of Metal Industries and Associated Technologies of Galicia (Asime). What are the main challenges you face?

We live in a time of complete transformation in many areas, which creates great opportunities, but also uncertainties. The climate crisis will undoubtedly shape the reality of our industry. The effective decarbonisation of all European sectors by 2050 is a major challenge, which will require major restructuring and investment in renewable energies such as offshore wind energy, where Galicia has a great opportunity to consolidate itself as an industrial hub of international reference, in terms of component manufacturing and also as a place for the implementation of offshore wind farms.

Technologies such as artificial intelligence will have to be integrated into our companies, or reality will pass us by. It will be a global challenge to come up with regulations that allow ethics to be maintained, without undermining technological development, while at the same time we must make an effort to ensure that SMEs are not left behind.

In economic terms, the tightening of access to credit and the shadow of the economic slowdown will make financing more difficult and costly for our industry. In this regard, we must continue to work on the diversification of activities and access to foreign markets, where Galicia already has a great name. The "divide and rule" will become, more than ever, "diversify and rule". 

Finally, the growing international instability will, unfortunately, continue to impact our economy as a collateral effect. The war in Ukraine and now also in Gaza add tension to an international geopolitics that we have already seen can play tricks on supply and energy costs.

What is your assessment of the situation in the sector?

The metal sector and its associated technologies is a fundamental pillar of the Galician economy. It encompasses key industries such as the automotive, aeronautics, naval-maritime, offshore wind power and renewable energies, among many others. We are therefore facing a very consolidated industry, which generates 20% of the Galician industrial GDP and more than 57,000 jobs. We are living in uncertain times, but, despite everything, our industry is very diversified and used to weathering the storm, so we look to the year 2024 with a certain optimism. We should not relax, however, as the current complex geopolitical situation will force them to explore new markets, while we work intensively on the digitalisation of our industry and on tackling the huge lack of qualified professionals, which is jeopardising the very growth and competitiveness of our industry.

In the field of renewable energies, how do you assess Galicia's potential in offshore wind energy?

Our industry not only has extensive experience in the entire value chain of this sector, but our territory also has an enormous wind resource that is now regulated by the North Atlantic demarcation of the Maritime Management Plan (POEM), which establishes more than 2,000 square kilometres with offshore wind potential, 43% of all the areas approved for this activity in Spain as a whole. We are, therefore, facing an unprecedented opportunity.

Furthermore, when we talk about capacity, we are talking about the experience and know-how of our wind and naval-maritime industry which, unlike many other countries and regions, can provide a complete solution to the offshore wind value chain. That is why we should not only focus on the installation of wind farms, but also on turning Spain and Galicia in particular into a hub of reference as a European innovation pole that also provides R&D solutions and exports pioneering technology. This ranges from engineering and development to the construction of support vessels and the manufacture of wind turbines and fixed and floating foundation structures. We are already doing this for international developers, now it is time to exploit this industry at home as well.

What opportunities does this energy open up for the value chain?

The reality is that today in Europe there is only enough capacity to supply 50% of all the offshore wind farms that are planned to be developed. This is precisely where Galicia has an unprecedented opportunity, because our industry is already very well positioned internationally. In fact, of the only 5 floating wind farms in Europe, 3 have Galician technology.

At Asime we have been promoting offshore wind energy since 2013 through our Galician Offshore Energy Group. We are working to boost and export our industrial capacity in this field, always defending compatibility with other activities. The opportunity is huge, we are talking about generating up to 9,000 new jobs in 10 years and a tractor effect in 200 companies. This is the essential path towards the decarbonisation of our economy.