SUARDIAZ Group

The Suardiaz family background in the maritime business began with Antonio Suardiaz Valdés who started working in shipping and shipbuilding and became a renowned figure. The Antonio López steamer was launched for him in 1912.

The business would later be transferred to his sister, Cristina Suardiaz Valdés, who was married to Juan Riva Diaz, who, years later, would hand over the business to his sons José and Rafael Riva Suardiaz.

In 1943, the Riva Suardiaz brothers laid the foundations of the Grupo Riva-Suardiaz in Asturias, continuing in the maritime business until their deaths.

In the intervening years, part of the fleet was set aside for the automotive sector and another part was used for logistics services, developing their own terminals in different ports. The Group also devoted itself to the rail service in acquiring Pecovasa, which it would later sell to Renfe Mercancías.

From the 1980s, the second generation of the family joined the Board of Directors.

In subsequent years, the business would expand with the acquisition of Creuers del Port de Barcelona, Barcelona’s cruise ship terminal; the oil tanker Livia was acquired; and multimodal transportation was developed for the purposes of offering a comprehensive service

In 2013, the Group underwent a financial and organisational reorganisation, at which point Juan Riva was appointed sole director, a role which he had held since 2002, with the company remaining a fully family-run company.

During that time, which involved an organisational change and the international expansion of the group, the fleet of car carrier and RoRo vessels was renewed in order to sell the older fleet and acquire another with a greater tonnage in order to respond to the challenges of the day.

In the same line, in 2015, SUARDIAZ Group signed an agreement with Spain and France to use the St Nazaire-Vigo Sea Motorway in its commitment to sustainable development. The service was later expanded from the north of Africa to the north of Europe to supply the automotive industry with factories in Tangiers and Kenitra.

The company continued to grow with the creation of its offshore wind division in 2023 to provide ad hoc turnkey logistics solutions for offshore wind farms.

In recent years, the presidency of Juan Riva in the Spanish Shipowners Association (ANAVE) and in the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA), in addition to being a member of the current Board of Directors of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), has enabled SUARDIAZ Group to grow on the international stage.