The launch of the new Port Authority in the Canaries between Lanzarote and Fuerteventura — the 11th in Spain — is progressing step by step following a 2016 agreement by the PSOE and CC to move forward with the backing of the business sector in those islands. The Arrecife (Lanzarote) and Puerto del Rosario (Fuerteventura) docks are strengthening their role as vital arteries for supplying consumer goods, industrial inputs and energy resources in the eastern Canaries province. Both port areas, managed by the Port Authority of Las Palmas, processed a combined total of 3,342,839 tonnes of cargo in 2024, according to the latest figures from the Canary Islands Statistics Institute (ISTAC), which has not yet incorporated 2025 data that, the article notes, should be somewhat higher.
Puerto de Arrecife (Lanzarote): Traffic balance and industrial push
Arrecife port closed 2024 with a cumulative 1,873,379 tonnes of goods, recording in December a flow of 150,563 tonnes. General cargo led activity at the Lanzarote dock with 1,352,357 tonnes for the year (113,435 tonnes in December) and a total of 6,399 units processed. In the energy and inputs segment, liquid bulk came to 418,213 tonnes annually (28,095 tonnes in December), while solid bulk reached 64,462 tonnes for the year (5,203 tonnes in the last month). Bunkering activities totalled 31,006 tonnes, and fresh fishing landings amounted to 942 tonnes in the year-to-date figure.
Alongside these operating figures, Arrecife’s port capital will add a new industrial service following the decision by the Board of Directors of the Port Authority of Las Palmas to delegate to its chair the awarding of a demanial concession to its subsidiary Boluda Container Factory. The company will use a plot of 5,068 square metres in Functional Area 5 to set up a specialized workshop for the repair, maintenance and technical outfitting of dry and refrigerated containers (reefer). The move is intended to shorten replacement times and improve the cold chain for island supply.
Puerto del Rosario (Fuerteventura): A profile of Majorera supply
For its part, Puerto del Rosario recorded across 2024 total cargo traffic of 1,469,460 tonnes, of which 144,237 tonnes corresponded to operations logged in December. As in the neighboring island, general cargo was the main load category in Fuerteventura, exceeding one million tonnes with 1,015,894 tonnes for the year (96,010 tonnes in December) and 3,102 units processed.
The breakdown by cargo type at the majorero capital’s port placed liquid bulk at 362,799 tonnes for the year (40,067 tonnes in December), while the solid bulk item totaled 77,017 tonnes over the period (5,073 tonnes in December). Supply and bunkering work for vessels added up to 10,647 tonnes throughout 2024 (2,809 tonnes in the closing month), recording a residual figure of 1 tonne of fresh fish in the overall 2024 count, the last year analyzed by Istac.
The article ‘A closer look at the power of Arrecife and Puerto del Rosario ports in the Canaries’ was first published by canarymaritime.com.
