Minister for Enterprise, Development, Technology and Transport

1. In your last interview with us back in 2005, Gibraltar was one of the top ten bunkering ports in the world and one of the leadings ports in the Mediterranean. Six years later the port maintains this position. What are, according to you, the main reasons for this result?

The Government has focused its attention on ensuring that the Port of Gibraltar maintains its importance within the Gibraltar economy. The fact is Gibraltar is recognised in the maritime world as being an efficient, well-run, well-regulated port and obviously our geographical location helps.. If you consider that over 100,000 vessels  transit the Strait of Gibraltar every year, just over 11,000 call here, which is just over 10% of that traffic. Therefore our potential for growth is huge.  . Having said that, we are physically constrained by our size. Nevertheless, we are absolutely delighted  with the way the Port has grown over the years.

2. One of the reasons for the increase in demand of the port services is due to people going back to shipping because of the global economic crisis. To cope with the increase in demand you are trying to expand to the east side with new bunker slots. Could you tell us more about this project?

We’ve been analysing our bunkering business and trying to see how we could increase capacity because we are limited by the number of anchorage slots  available on the western side on the Rock of Gibraltar. The obvious alternative is to make bunkering available on the east side. However, the Government has not taken any final decision, because there are obvious environmental issues of concern. With this in mind, in September last year, we initiated the process for an environmental impact assessment (EIA) in order to  assess and study all the issues involved.

Once the EIA has been completed, there will be a full public debate and only after all that, will the Government make a final decision on the matter. I think one needs to balance the interests of Gibraltar on the East Side in respect of environmental issues against the growth of the bunkering industry. One thing may actually not complement the other and we may have to make the decision that we will not be undertaking bunkering on the East side of the Rock. But I think that is up to the experts that come forward with their views. Problems may be identified, which could be mitigated and we could therefore take the  view to allow bunkering on the East Side to take place under certain conditions. Therefore I would not want to make a comment as to what the Government’s decisions will finally be, because that will be pre-emptying not just the results of the EIA but also the public debate that needs to take place.

3. Today, the port of Gibraltar is “only” picking 10% of the traffic going through the straight (10,000 ships). In terms of bunkering operations, who are your main competitors in the area and what is your forecast once the expansion of the port is finished?

If you look at the area of the Strait of Gibraltar…we have Tangier, we have the port of Ceuta, we have the port of Algeciras, we have the port of Gibraltar. The port of Gibraltar leads with approximately 70% of  the market share, followed by Algeciras which has something like 28%, and I’m happy to give you the exact figures because we do have the breakdown of the exact market share. And then there are Ceuta and Tangier, which have a very small amount of business. I think the importance of the port of Gibraltar is that it is recognised as being a very competitive and efficiently-run  bunkering port  , with few delays. Time is money, and we pride ourselves in the way the entire operations are carried out and it is this excellent reputation which brings more business our way.   

Although our main activity is bunkering, the policy of the Gibraltar Port Authority has always been to promote Gibraltar as a one-stop-shop. In other words, it is a port where vessels can obtain provisions, undertake crew changes, with an international airport only minutes away.  We also provide services such as underwater cleaning, ship repairs and provisions.    

The language I think is important as well. The fact that we are an English-speaking community and English being the international maritime language, helps considerably. I think these are all advantages that add up to making Gibraltar an attractive port of call. And therefore t comments made about our fiscal advantages and the fact that our prices are much cheaper than anywhere else, are not really true.  Bunkering prices compare favourably with other ports in the area. Some say they are more expensive but  ships are willing to pay that extra bit more because of all the  Different maritime services they can avail themselves of while they are here.

4. Last year 2010 the number of cruise calls and cruise passengers fell by 26% and 12% respectively despite the fact that these figures increased in cities such as Cádiz or Málaga. What are the key factors that make the port of Gibraltar attractive for cruising and when will the extension of the current cruise terminal be done?

The reality is the number of passengers and cruise calls in Gibraltar last year dropped but if you analyse those figures carefully, most of the ships that are regular callers at Gibraltar came to Gibraltar last year….We have two particularly instances where vessels that used to call in at Gibraltar bay every week in the previous years and used to have for six months out of the year weekly calls on small six hundred seven hundred passengers decided to change their itineraries and therefore are not included in the Gibraltar itineraries.

The reality is that while the number of passengers and cruise calls did fall slightly, analysis of the figures will show that all our regular callers continue to do so.   What caused the figures to dip was the decision by two operators, each with one vessel, which called here weekly, to amend their itineraries and regional area of operation.

The reality is Gibraltar is an important cruise port. I visit all the big Miami-based cruise companies personally every year  and hear from them that customer satisfaction on cruise ships visiting Gibraltar is extremely high. We are talking of very high figures compared to most other European ports. And therefore it is a source of satisfaction for me that cruise passengers acknowledge the fact that Gibraltar is a good port of call for most people to experience. Comparison with what  it was  10 or 15 years ago, where  it was improving but it was actually quite low,  customer satisfaction has been turned around quite substantially. Gibraltar is doing things well and   we take a lot of pride in making sure that we meet with   the cruise companies   and know what they want, what their requirements are, and try and improve things they tell us need to be improved. 

5. You outlined a proposal during the 1^st World Ports Summit in Brussels, on the eve of the European Cruise Council to allow vessels to operate Casinos while docked overnight in Gibraltar. Have the main actors in the cruise industry shown interest in this proposal?

This is something that I discussed with cruise companies in Miami and with Ships Captains when we go on board visiting ships. I was always curious why ships sailed from Gibraltar at around 6pm even if they were going to neighbouring ports. When I asked why this was the case, I was told the ships go round and round in circles, burning fuel, in international waters, where they can open up their casinos and shops, which they then couldn’t do while docked alongside in Gibraltar and any other port. 

Hence the idea that we would allow cruise companies to  be allowed to open up their casinos and duty free shops after 6 o’clock, while still alongside at Gibraltar.  This is a win-win situation all around.  As far as were concerned they stay alongside for longer, which means that passengers can enjoy, for example, night tours  or  have an evening out in Gibraltar, which would not be possible if they left at six o’clock. The ships do not consume any fuel because they’re not moving , while still being able to open the casinos and doing  everything they normally would do if they were sailing.

We spoke to a number of the bigger companies like Royal Caribbean, and they were very enthusiastic with the idea; they thought it was an excellent proposition because cruise companies are under a lot of pressure to minimize costs. The price of fuel is at an all time high, and therefore they find themselves having to revisit itineraries and time spent in port. We subsequently drafted legislation, took it to Parliament and now  it’s law. It opened up  new opportunities for us. Normally cruise ships come in to Gibraltar and stay here for an average of 6 or 7 hours; now, there is no reason why they should no be able to stay in Gibraltar until 2 or 3 in the morning, and then sail to their next destination, such as Cadiz,   Malaga or Alicante,   all within a few hours reach. We hope that this will have a big impact.

When it comes to a small place like Gibraltar, legislation can actually come to Parliament quickly. Being small sometimes has its advantages  in being able to adapt to market conditions much quicker than big nations which obviously have far more complex system in place and processes in order to pass legislation through parliament. I don’t doubt that bigger countries like Spain, Italy or Greece etc may actually be doing something like this but it will probably be 3 or 4 or 5 years down the line.  

6. The most important sectors to the Gibraltarian economy include the Financial Services. Tourism, Shipping, e- gamming... Which are the most interesting for foreign investors?

Every sector has its own advantages and attractiveness.  One of the successes of the Gibraltar economy is the fact that it is multifaceted, and that means that there is an element of resilience when it comes to  global economic issues. Obviously Financial Services is the leading sector of the economy. Gibraltar is now a very highly regulated, quality, jurisdiction for financial services. It is no longer offshore, it is onshore, and I think that it is now recognized internationally  by the International  Monetary Fund and other bodies of having the highest regulatory standards ..

Tourism is obviously a sector  which is growing, and it is safe to say we are probably victims of our own success. If you look at the tourism  figures, they have increased so exponentially in the last few years that,  while the world appears to be in recession, Gibraltar is still doing very good. 

E-gaming is a sector   limited in size, insofar as we have maintained a very tight grip on the reins. If Gibraltar had wanted to issue licenses to every applicant, we would have 250 operators in e-gaming in Gibraltar; we have just 22.  But we have the 22 of the very best and Gibraltar is probably  the leading e-gaming jurisdiction in the world. If you look at government policy generally across all sectors there is one common denominator: we are not looking for quantity, but are definitely looking for quality. Quality is the theme you will see right across all sectors of the economy: be it registration of ships, e-gaming, tourism... we try and have the best, we try and go for the best and we don’t need too much in numbers to  enjoy success because Gibraltar is a small economy. Therefore we can be choosy, we can try and ensure that we only attract the best and that has paid off.  Success breeds success and that is evident in the way Gibraltar has developed in the last 15 years.

7. How is the collaboration you maintain with Algeciras?

I know that Mr. Moron – president of the Port Authority of Algeciras- and I believe exactly in the same things for the future of the main sectors in the bay.

We have made a number of proposals to Algeciras Port in terms of cooperation in things like environmental issues, antipollution response ... and in certain issues such as demarcating shipping channels and coordination of VTS, which still have to be addressed. I think at a practical level, whenever something has happened in Algeciras, we have offered help if needed. But in reality we could   work  much closer together if only there was a political will. And I think  we definitely have this political will in Gibraltar. So long as we all need to understand that all our political positions shouldn’t be undermined. We cannot allow a situation where cooperation means giving up certain rights and certain beliefs . And as a government, I can assure that we want this relation to happen.

8. You have been minister for many years, so what are your projects for the future?

Looking at the figures, if you compare 1996, which is  when I first became a Government Minister, with today, you will see that in the majority of cases the activity of the port has almost tripled in size. Today we have a Port Authority which is more professional than it ever has been before. Going forward, I see the port being a more important part of our economy. The government will continue to invest resources in this particular area, because we feel that it has potential and internationally is recognised for quality and efficiency.