The sole administrator of Astican, a subsidiary of the Greek Lavinia Group (Laskadiris), Germán Suárez Calvo, said this Thursday on SER Las Palmas, during an interview with Evaristo Quintana, that “there are things that can be done” with Morocco, such as competing, and outlined the cooperation he maintains with Zamakona Yards. Of this group, which he praised for its competitive capacity, the Lavinia executive said, “I’m not afraid of them,” and therefore recommended that Moroccan shipowners in Agadir turn to them for new vessels for the artisanal fishing fleet.
Coalición Canaria
In an interview that alternated between informal dialogue and more solemn moments—in which he was introduced as president of Astican and chose not to correct the title—Suárez Calvo argued for the presence of Coalición Canaria in the Spanish Congress of Deputies in Madrid, as a lever to defend general interests through an independent parliamentary group. Suárez used the first-person plural with the verb achieve, considering it key for the islands to have nationalist weight in Madrid. Here you can listen to the full content.
Nationalist unity
“If we managed to get four or five, I think results could be achieved because the context is different; now those seats are worth much more. It was already demonstrated in the past—it was very positive. If it can be achieved now, it’s worth much more. Now this ball is left to the politicians: gentlemen, sit down, talk to each other, and go on a single ticket; but that is work they have to do.”
Regarding cooperation programs with Morocco, the sole administrator of the Lavinia subsidiary said that the Port of Las Palmas already does this and that this is the path to follow in the Berber market, although, in his view, Morocco—where Tangier Med is located and where in Villa Cisneros a port cloned in size and services called Dakhla Atlantique is expected to start operations before 2027—is “30 or 40 years” behind environments such as Las Palmas in terms of port business.
Zamakona and fisheries
“I also compete here, for example, when we’re talking about ship repairs—my neighbors, the people at Zamakona—but it’s also true that sometimes we do things together, and very interesting ones, and that’s why I’m not afraid of them. We are 30 or 40 years ahead of them; we have to continue focusing on things that mean competing on added value and not on costs—at least that’s how I’ve been applying it for a long time,” he said. He explained that the president of the fishing shipowners of Agadir raised the need to renew “I don’t know whether 2,000 or 3,000” fishing vessels they have along the Moroccan Atlantic coast, which must move from wood to steel construction.
Calzada
“They offered me to build the fishing vessels directly, and do you know what I replied? The truth: I don’t do construction; we do ship repairs. We are the best at ship repairs—the best in Spain, yes—but not construction. Now, I do know very good people who do construction in the Canary Islands—Zamakona—and if not, go to northern Spain if you don’t like Zamakona. And he asked me whether Zamakona was my competition, but they’re good at that and I have to say it. And this conversation is true because Beatriz Calzada was in front of me; those were the conversations that took place.” Regarding Calzada’s management, he said that as president of the Port Authority of Las Palmas she has acted with great professionalism since taking office. “She is doing a good job,” he said.
Western Sahara vs. Ukraine
He compared opposition to Morocco over the Western Sahara issue with criticism of doing fishing business with the Russian fleet due to the special military operation in Ukraine (which has already lasted longer than the war between Stalin’s Russia and Hitler’s Germany), and noted that the EU in January 2026 introduced a new regulation to prevent gas purchases from 2027. “I don’t get into the Saharan conflict, I don’t get into the Moroccan conflict (…) but in the meantime it’s better that we are there than others,” he said.
Offshore wind
“At Astican we are (literally) going to be executing more than €30 million before the end of the year, which we have to amortize in less than 25 years, and on top of that we are under a concession regime—the asset isn’t even company property. Evaristo, do you think I’m going to empty Astican’s activity to take it somewhere else? No way, pardon the expression, given that we’re live on air.”
Boluda and Marsa Maroc
Regarding the sale of 45% of Boluda’s terminals to Marsa Maroc, the Moroccan state operator, he described it as “noise,” noting that the stake belonged to an investment fund and that it also allows Boluda TM to open terminals in Morocco. He recalled that he is a partner with Boluda in the shipping agency B&S with a 50% stake. “I think it’s excellent,” he said.
Article written by Pedro Marrero. Edited and verified by Gara Vega. Cross-checked information without institutional filters. This analysis has not been financed by official advertising nor conditioned by lobbying interests.
