Port competitiveness and connectivity: the Canary Islands main ports case Beatriz TOVAR 1* , Rubén HERNÁNDEZ 2 and Héctor RODRÍGUEZ-DÉNIZ 3 1 Beatriz TOVAR Infrastructure and Transport Research Group (EIT), Department of Applied Economics, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, FCEE D.2.20, 35017, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. 2 Rubén HERNÁNDEZ Department of Logistics Innovation Center, Industrial Engineering Department, Mahidol University, 25/25 Phuttamonthon 4 Road, Salaya, Nakhonpathom 73170, Thailand 3 Héctor RODRÍGUEZ-DÉNIZ Infrastructure and Transport Research Group (EIT), Department of Applied Economics, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, FCEE. D.3.01, 35017, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. * Corresponding author: Beatriz TOVAR. E-mail: btovar@daea.ulpgc.es Department of Applied Economics, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, FCEE D.2.20, 35017, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. Abstract Canary Islands' economy is extremely dependent on sea transport. Since accessibility and connectivity are major determinants of international transport costs, the analysis of its main port’s connectivity is crucial for keeping costs under control. The aim of the paper is twofold. First, infrastructure and superstructure endowment of main Canarian ports and its accessibility (evaluating site and situation factors) is documented. Secondly, connectivity of main Canarian ports is assessed based in the graph theory which provides important measures to define ports competitiveness and its potential to achieve or keep regional or global hub status, letting us assess this and to follow its evolution. A sub- network of 53 ports directly related with Las Palmas and Tenerife ports has been selected with this purpose. Findings are mainly related to the connections among the nodes in the sample network and the position the targeted ports hold. Additionally, some policy recommendations regarding how to improve the connectivity and competitiveness of Canarian ports are also enumerated. Previous analysis indicates that, at present, Las Palmas port is the only regional hub in the Canaries. As long as different port authorities manage the Canary Islands’ main ports, they could be tempted to compete for transshipment cargoes. Both Canarian Port Authorities should differentiate themselves by, for example specializing in certain valued added services and increasing traffic in these services avoiding the danger of a destructive competition between them to attract transit traffic. They should be proactive in maintaining and improving the main canarian ports' connectivity. Keywords Port competitiveness, port connectivity, port accessibility, Canary Islands ports, transport networks. 1