The Role of Seaports for Portuguese Economic Recovery: The Port of Sines

The expansion for new export markets seems as inevitable as a challenge to the Portuguese economic recovery. Due to its peculiar geographical location Portugal is conditioned by the need to cross Spanish territory to reach central Europe. Moreover and assuming country’s geographical asymmetries where the coastline continues to be the main interface zone comprising nearly 70% of the population located within a 50 km littoral stripe, the adoption of an integrated policy for ports and other related activities appears as imperative. Portuguese continental ports are more than ever assuming a paramount role to surmount land-side constraints. Easy access to the foreland diminishes adverse land connections and mitigates the weak results arising from the hard task to capture cargo in the competitive hinterland. In order to understand the economic role this sector plays in the opening of new export markets, and pointing out expected growth opportunities and the threats that can arise from close proximity with major competitors, this paper cast a glance over the major continental Portuguese seaport. By giving an appropriate evaluation of the actual status and recommending further policies to adopt this paper aims to contribute for the interdisciplinary studies field applied to ports, using the framework of economic geography and spatial analysis rather than a port-specific approach.