1.2 Functions and legal form (I_01)
Huelva Port Authority is one of twenty-eight port authorities under the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, via the Public Body Puertos del Estado, which manages the Spanish Port System, comprising forty-six ports of general interest.
In accordance with Royal Legislative Decree 2/2011 of 5 September, approving the Consolidated Text of the Law on State Ports and the Merchant Navy, Huelva Port Authority is a body with its own legal personality and assets, as well as full legal capacity, and is governed by the specific legislation on ports of general interest, by the provisions of the General Budget Law applicable to it and, subsidiarily, by Law 6/1997 of 14 April on the Organisation and Functioning of the General State Administration (a provision that was repealed upon the entry into force of Law 40/2015 of 1 October 2015 on the Legal Regime of the Public Sector, which addresses the comprehensive reform of the organisation and functioning of public administrations).
Scope of powers
The Port Authority carries out the functions assigned to it by the aforementioned Consolidated Text of the Law on State Ports and the Merchant Navy, with the powers established therein, under the general principle of functional and managerial autonomy, without prejudice to the powers attributed to the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda through Puertos del Estado and those corresponding to the Autonomous Community. Article 25 of the aforementioned legal text establishes that the following powers fall within the remit of the Port Authorities:
a) The provision of general services, as well as the management and control of port services to ensure that they are provided under optimal conditions of efficiency, economy, productivity and safety, without prejudice to the powers of other bodies.
b) The planning of the port service area and port activities, in coordination with the authorities responsible for spatial planning and town and country planning.
c) The planning, design, construction, maintenance and operation of the port’s works and services, and of the maritime signals entrusted to them, subject to the provisions of this Act.
d) The management of the public port domain and the maritime signals assigned to them.
e) The optimisation of financial management and the maximisation of returns on the assets and resources allocated to them.
f) The promotion of industrial and commercial activities related to maritime or port traffic.
g) The coordination of operations involving the various modes of transport within the port area.
h) The organisation and coordination of port traffic, both maritime and land-based.
Public domain management framework
With regard to the management model for the assigned public domain, in accordance with the Consolidated Text approved by the aforementioned Royal Legislative Decree 2/2011 of 5 September, such management is geared, whilst safeguarding the public interest, towards promoting and increasing private sector participation in the financing, construction and operation of port facilities and in the provision of services, through the granting of the relevant authorisations and concessions, both relating to public property and public works, in accordance with the provisions of the aforementioned law (Article 66).
The Port Authority is responsible for the provision and management of port spaces and basic infrastructure, promoting both the port’s economic activity and the provision of services by the private sector, following a model for the management of infrastructure and the public port domain based on criteria of profitability and efficiency (Article 66).
Financing mechanisms
According to the aforementioned Consolidated Text of the Law on State Ports and the Merchant Navy, the Port Authority’s financial regime is guided by the principle of financial self-sufficiency, within a framework of economic and financial management autonomy, with specific annual profitability targets (Article 27).
Of the financial resources established by this Act for Port Authorities, it should be noted that, in the case of the Port Authority of Huelva, there have been no resources derived from credits, loans and other financial operations, nor those arising from donations, bequests and other contributions from individuals and private entities, nor are any expected.