Port of Granadilla facts for kids
The Puerto Industrial de Granadilla is a large port located in the town of Granadilla de Abona. This town is in the southeast part of Tenerife, which is an island in Spain. This port helps the main port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife by providing extra space and facilities. It's designed to handle different types of ships and goods, attract new business, and manage future growth. It is the largest industrial port in the Canary Islands.
What Makes the Port Special
The Granadilla port has a long outer wall, called a contradique, which is about 1,150 meters long. It helps protect the port from waves. The main dock, known as the Exterior Dock, stretches for 2,512 meters.
There's also a special dock called the Muelle de Ribera. It is 160 meters long and can handle very deep ships because the water is sixteen meters deep there. Next to this dock is a large flat area, an esplanade, which is about fifteen hectares big. This space is used for storing goods and moving things around.
A second part of the Muelle de Ribera is currently being built. This will add another 160 meters of dock space. In the future, the port might also have a special plant to turn natural gas into liquid form, called a regasification plant.
With the Granadilla Port now working, the Port Authority of Santa Cruz de Tenerife manages six important ports. These include the ports of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Los Cristianos, and Granadilla on Tenerife. They also manage the ports of San Sebastián de La Gomera, Santa Cruz de La Palma, and La Estaca on the island of El Hierro.
How the Port Was Built
The idea for the Port of Granadilla was officially approved in 2004 by a special government order. In 2006, the European Commission, which is like a big government group in Europe, also agreed that the port could be built.
After these approvals, there were some delays in the construction work. But in November 2017, the Ministry of Development, a government department in Spain, gave the final approval. This meant the port could finally start receiving its first ships.
The very first ship to dock at the Port of Granadilla arrived on November 21, 2017. It was a large floating platform called "West Leo," owned by a company named Seadrill. This platform had traveled all the way from the Avondale Shipyard, located near the Mississippi River in the southern United States.
The port was officially opened on March 2, 2018. The President of the Government of Spain at that time, Mariano Rajoy, attended the opening ceremony.
