The Third Vice President and Minister of Economic Affairs of the Government of Spain, Nadia Calvin, has clarified that electro-intensive industries do not have to stop their activity under the real government decree, given the exceptions included in it in the last ministerial order approved.

Calviño, in his appearance after the Council of Ministers, referred to the requests from various autonomous communities, such as the Basque Autonomous Community and Asturias, to mold the content of the royal decree that paralyzes economic activity not essential to the reality of each territory. He has said that the royal decree is “very clear” in its fourth article and leaves it to the companies to determine minimum services to guarantee that the activity is lowered in these first 7 days and can be reactivated later, avoiding as much as possible the possible contagions of coronavirus.

Said article establishes that industries not dedicated to providing material and services considered essential “they will be able to maintain a minimum essential activity, through work shifts or minimum number of staff, having as a point of reference the activity of weekends or holidays “, or where appropriate the period of lowest production. It also establishes that this minimum maintenance of the activity” must understand it especially prescribed for those industrial facilities whose prolonged shutdown for several days causes damages that make it impossible or difficult to put them back into production or that creates the risk of accidents “.

Calviño has said that the electro-intensive industry cannot be stopped, so it must be ensured that a reduced level of activity can be maintained and with less mobility of workers. He added that it is the companies that must see what is the best way to organize themselves and does not see why an agreement can not be reached that allows to maintain the activity, that customers do not lose and avoid greater damage in the reduced period of days that economic activity has been limited to the maximum.

The spokesman for the Basque government, Josu Erkoreka, has revealed this Tuesday that the regional Executive was maintaining with the central a “hot line of communication” to try apply in the Basque Country with a certain “flexibility” the measures included in the royal decree, especially in the industrial sector. “The royal decree contains flexibility clauses that it is possible to use reasonably,” he remarked after specifically citing the articles that speak of the possibility “of establishing work shifts to maintain an activity that is essential and that would allow adapt measures to certain Basque industrial sectors“.

“We work particularly in the maintenance of electrointensive activity in the Basque Country at weekend levels. It would be an important strategic achievement for a good part of our industrial fabric, “he insisted.

Maroto insists that the non-essential industry has to reduce its activity

The Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, recalled that all companies that are not engaged in essential activities have to reduce their activity to a minimum, including electro-intensive industry, with the aim of further reducing mobility and thus slowing the spread of the coronavirus among the population.

At a press conference held in the Moncloa Palace together with the Minister of Health, Salvador Illa, Maroto has admitted the “complexity” of the industry’s value chains, although he has insisted on the need to interpret the government decree on the closure of non-essential activity “consistently“.

While the industry that has a value chain belonging to essential sectors will be able to continue developing its activity, the rest will have to adjust to a “minimum” production, which includes steel companies, which will continue with a level of activity typical of weekends or the lowest possible.

For the minister, the indications of the decree are “very clear” and assume that all non-essential industry must go towards a “minimum essential activity” that allows its reactivation, once the crisis has passed.