Asturias
Asturias shows post-coal transition: from 400,000 coal workers to ~800, with €169M in green transition funding creating 320 jobs vs thousands lost.
Asturias exemplifies industrial succession under pressure—a region where coal once employed 400,000 workers now counting approximately 800. Spain's first mining license was issued here in 1593; coal shaped not just economy but social, technological, and environmental life. Steel, zinc, aluminium, cement, and chemical industries followed the energy source, creating an industrial ecosystem that the EU's 2018 mining decision dismantled. By 2025, four coal-fired thermal power plants will have closed.
The region leads Spain in reducing high-emission employment—a 3.4 percentage point drop in five years, five times the OECD average. Since 2019, €169 million in aid has supported 38 restoration, industrial, and energy projects in southwest Asturias, expected to mobilize €135 million additional investment and create 320 jobs. Over 1,167 hectares of former mining land undergo restoration, generating 150 jobs annually through 2026 with priority for former coal workers. 160 miners received direct financial support; others retrain for site restoration.
Yet transition generates frustration. Private sector engagement lags expectations; communities express concern over diversification pace. The central district (Avilés, Gijón, Oviedo) holds 54.7% of the population, while former mining regions (Nalón, Caudal) retain inhabitants who commute to these hubs. BBVA forecasts 11,500 new jobs in 2025-2026, with unemployment potentially falling to 10.8%—progress, but insufficient to replace what coal-era industry provided. Asturias demonstrates that just transition requires not just funding but viable alternative industries at comparable scale.