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Manufacture of metal products
- The manufacture of metal products is the most representative activity in Asturias, characterised by: Deep-rooted industrial culture, the heritage of its history as a mining and steel region Solid local base of suppliers of goods and services for industrial activities Main steel and metallurgical area in Spain
www.investinasturias.es/en/metal-and-advanced-manufacturing/
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The most representative sectors of Industry in Asturias are the following: AGRI-FOOD INDUSTRY: – Dairy products, with a production of more than 620.000 tons of dairy products each year. – Meat, passing through all stages of the production process, with more than 68.500 tons per year.
Agri-food is a major industry in Asturias, as the third branch of activity along with the metal and extractive industries, energy and water. Asturias is one of the largest cheese-producing areas in Europe, with 20 officially certified varieties.
- Overview
- Geography
- History
Asturias, comunidad autónoma (autonomous community) and historic region of Spain that is coextensive with the northwestern Spanish provincia (province) of Asturias. It is bounded by the autonomous communities of Cantabria to the east, Castile-León to the south, and Galicia to the west. The Cantabrian Sea lies to the north. The autonomous community ...
Mountains cover more than four-fifths of Asturias. The region may be divided into several east-west zones. North to south, these include the plains and hills of the Atlantic coast, which occupy a narrow strip and recede into a range of coastal hills. These hills surround the central corridor, the valley of the Nalón River, in which most of Asturias’s population and industries are concentrated. Structurally, this is a longitudinal depression running between the centres of Cangas de Onis (east) and Oviedo (west). The Cantabrian Mountains rise to the south, with the glaciated Europa Peaks established as a national park. Valleys run north to south, but Leitariegos Pass is the only easily accessible pass into the neighbouring region of Castile-León. Annual precipitation is high, exceeding 40 inches (1,000 mm). The climate is oceanic, with relatively even precipitation throughout the year; temperatures are moderate and show little seasonal variation.
The Asturian population has doubled since 1900, but its proportion in the Spanish population has steadily declined, and emigration has left behind an aging population. Emigration to the industrialized regions of Spain and to other western European countries has kept population growth below the national average. The declining agricultural sector has led to emigration from the countryside, with the population increasingly concentrated in the industrial and urban triangle of Oviedo, Avilés, and Gijón.
Agriculture is poorly developed in the region. Traditional crops are wheat, millet, and kidney beans, and crop rotation has included corn (maize) and potatoes since the 18th century. Asturian agriculture has traditionally had a collective orientation, and the extensive pastures in the mountains were communal until the early 20th century. Pastures and the cultivation of fodder have spread dramatically since that time, establishing animal husbandry as the dominant agricultural activity. Swiss cattle, introduced in 1885, are the leading farm animals and have steadily displaced sheep and horses.
The wealth of Asturias, however, is in its coalfields, which extend throughout the Nalón Basin and cover more than 1,000 square miles (2,600 square km). Asturias is the most important mining and metallurgical region in Spain. A great industrial complex has been built up at Avilés and has resulted in a large increase in its population. Mieres is a busy mining and smelting centre. Gijón’s seaport, Puerto del Musel, is Spain’s foremost coal-exporting port. There is an armaments factory at Trubia. Oviedo, the capital, is a cultural and communications hub. Asturias is also a major producer of zinc, but production has fallen off considerably since the mid-19th century. Asturias’s industries are not greatly diversified, although the manufacture of cement, glass, food and beverages, tobacco, leather, and textiles has increased.
The region’s undeveloped infrastructure has hindered industrial expansion. Roads and railroads tend to run north-south, converging on the triangle of Oviedo, Avilés, and Gijón and largely bypassing points lying to the east and west. Shipping has increased, favouring the ports of Avilés, Gijón, and El Musel.
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Asturias was an independent Christian kingdom between 718 and 910, formed by Visigothic nobles and officials who had been displaced by the Muslim invasion of Spain. The Visigoths elected Pelayo as king and set up a capital at Cangas de Onís. The kingdom extended its frontiers to include Galicia to the southwest and Cantabria to the east before the end of the 8th century. The capital was transferred first to Pravia (c. 780) and in the 9th century to Oviedo, a strategically sited new city. During the reign of Alfonso III (866–910), the frontiers of Asturias were pushed south to the line of the Duero River from the Atlantic to Osma.
By the 10th century the kingdom had become too large to be controlled effectively from the mountain capital at Oviedo, and in 910 García I made León, to the south, his capital. García’s successors styled themselves kings of León and Asturias and eventually simply kings of León. John I of Castile (a region that was united with León from 1230) created Asturias a principality for his eldest son, Henry (later King Henry III), in 1388. The title “prince of Asturias” subsequently was held by the crown princes throughout the years of the Spanish monarchy.
The main regional industry in modern times, however, was coal mining and steel production: in the times of Francisco Franco's dictatorship, it was the centre of Spain's steel industry.
Aug 12, 2023 · Asturias has three important museums linked to the world of mining and iron and steel, key industries in the development of industrial life in mining areas. They are essential visits if you like to learn from the past.
Overview In July 2024 Asturias exported €597M and imported €500M, resulting in a positive trade balance of €96.6M. Between July 2023 and July 2024 the exports of Asturias have increased by $134M (28.9%) from €463M to €597M, while imports increased by €77.1M (18.2%) from €423M to €500M.
The main regional industry in For centuries, the backbone of the Asturian economy was agriculture and fishing. Milk production and its derivatives was also traditional, but its big development was a by-product of the economic expansion of the late 1960s.
