Spanish company Balèaria wants to connect Miami with Havana by ferry

Adolfo Utor, president of the Spanish shipping companyBalearia, has reaffirmed its desire to unite Miami and Havana through aferry, although it has not specified what phase the project is in, which is long-standing.

A ferry route that crosses the Straits of Florida to link the cities of Miami and Havana with passengers and cargo transportation is a long-cherished dream of many.

In a recent interview with regional televisionIn Punt -cited by Tourinews- Slotrevealed its renewed desires for expansion between Florida and Havana, which joins other plans, including joining the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico through a ferry.

Nevertheless,The businessman did not offer specific details about the permits that the company must handle, nor did he provide a forecast of dates or rates for this new service.

Baleária has been present in the Caribbean since 2011, where it operates the ferry route betweenFort Lauderdale, in Florida, and Freeport, in Grand Bahama, Bahamas.

The promise of connecting Havana and Miami by ferry was first discussed in 2015.

In December of that year, Balèaria was part of a group offerry companies - most of them American - interested in making routes to Cubain the midst of the then prevailing thaw between Cuba and the United States. However, until that momentThe Cuban government had not delivered the corresponding permits.

The Alicante company then expressed its willingness to invest 35 million euros in the construction of facilities in the port of Havana to facilitate ferry operations.

BesidesIt was proposed to operate four boats that would cover the route taken by the Regla and Casablanca boats. Boats that would have a capacity of 100 passengers each and that would consume solar energy.

In June 2016 the prestigious Spanish shipping company BaleàriaI still wanted to be the first to restore the regular ferry route between Havana and Miami, but continued to receive refusals from the Cuban government, according to the European newspaperFive days.

Baleària's proposal was not limited to the Havana-Miami route, butIt also planned to connect the island with different destinations in the Caribbean and with Mexico.

In mid-2016, Eugenio Martínez, then Cuban ambassador to Spain, asked Baleària to be "patient" to obtain permission from the Cuban government, although they noted that the project presented by Baleària was "very interesting."

By that date, the Spanish shipping company already had permission from the US authorities and was waiting for the Cuban executive to make a decision regarding its request to be the first operator in a new Havana-Miami maritime corridor. .

After a wait that brought Donald Trump to the presidency,In March 2018 Adolfo Utor admitted that the project had been stopped due to the restrictions of the new North American administration.

After a history marked by several waits and extensions, the fact that Utor has reiterated in recent days its desire to inaugurate a Havana-Miami ferry puts the project back on the table, although it is not clear how advanced it is this time to be done. reality.

It is presumed that ferry service from Florida to Cuban ports would be cheaper than air tickets. This would make it a very attractive product for people of Cuban origin who live in the United States.

Balèaria is the leading Spanish shipping company in the transportation of passengers and cargo in connections with the Balearic Islands, where it connects the islands with the peninsula daily through the ports of Barcelona, Valencia and Dénia.