Ports of the State
Ports of the State ("Spanish: Puertos del Estado") is a State-owned company responsible for the management of state-owned ports. The company executes the port policy of the Government and coordinates and controls the efficiency of the port system, made up of 28 Port authorities that manage the 46 ports of general interest. This company, along with ENAIRE, exists for a constitutional mandate in Article 149, which grants the State the exclusive competence of ports and airports. Competences. The functions of the company are regulated in the Royal Legislative Decree 2/2011, of September 5, about  State Ports and the Merchant Navy: The coordination in maritime signaling is carried out through the Lighthouses Commission. Spanish Ports System. According to the Royal Legislative Decree 2/2011, the system consists of two types of ports; the ports of regional ownership, which depend on the governments of the Autonomous Communities where they are located and the ports of State ownership, that is, the ports qualified as of general interest for gathering some of the following features: Members of State's Ports. The Spanish State Port System is composed of 46 ports of general interest, managed by 28 Port authorities, whose  coordination and efficiency control corresponds to the Ports of the State company, a body under the Ministry of Public Works that is responsible for the execution of the Government's ports policy. Port activity and maritime transport contribute 20% to the GDP of the transport sector. The Law provides the Spanish port system with the necessary instruments to improve its competitive position in an open and globalized market, establishing a management autonomy regime for the Port Authorities, which must exercise their activity with business criteria. Spanish Port Authority Model. Within this framework, it is intended that the management of ports  of general interest respond to the so-called "landlord" model, in which the Port Authority is limited to being a provider of infrastructure and port land and to regulate the use of this public domain, while the services are mainly provided by private operators under authorization or concession regime. Structure of the port system. The 28 port authorities are: