THE PRESIDENT of the Valencian Community, Ximo Puig, has said that the region is waiting to close agreements with ten multinational companies with an investment of €24.4 billion.
Speaking at a Forum Europa breakfast meeting in Valencia on Friday, Puig claimed that 43,000 new direct jobs would be created if the deals come to fruition.
He stated that the companies were ‘important’ players linked to the renewable energy sector, green hydrogen and the automotive industry and components, such as electric car batteries.
With regional elections looming on May 28 and a tight race predicted according to opinion polls, Ximo Puig from the PSPV-PSOE party said the Valencian Community was in a better economic state than eight years ago when he became president.
“Never in the history of the Valencian Community have there been so many people in work- 2.1 million, 450,000 more than in 2015,” he proclaimed.
“We are competing with the most advanced European regions and, for the first time in history, we are at the forefront of large industries”, Puig continued.
“We are going to grow better to get better salaries, more opportunities and we also want to take advantage of this new re–industrialisation that is being generated in Europe.”
The Valencia region is seen as a key indicator as to whether or not the conservative opposition Partido Popular can beat Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in this autumn’s general election.
Ximo Puig currently governs in a coalition with the left-wing regional Compromis party and Unides Podemos, with polls suggesting that the Partido Popular will become the largest single party on May 28 but would need the support of the far-right Vox party to grab power.
Puig’s future could well be decided on how well Unides Podemos do and whether they reach the 5% threshold of votes to get seats in the Valencian parliament.