Gov. Scott leads business mission to Spain

Tallahassee, Fla. -- Gov. Rick Scott is half way through his business mission to Spain as he tries to convince more Spanish businesses to invest in Florida.

Gov. Scott is leading a 70-member delegation of business leaders and state officials. He has already met with Spain's Vice Minister of Commerce and is scheduled to meet with King Juan Carlos.

The timing of the trip is good. It will try to capitalize on next year's 500th anniversary of Juan Ponce de Leon's landing in Florida.

More than 300 Spanish companies already operate in Florida and the governor wants to boost that number.

Frank Ryll of the Florida Chamber of Commerce says the delegation is emphasizing Florida's proximity to growing economies in Latin America, which could offer new opportunities for Spanish companies.

"Florida is rapidly becoming a global hub in our proximity to Latin America," Ryll said. "Makes it ideal for a Spanish company to locate in Florida and use Florida as a base to export into Latin America and secondly I think the opportunities for Spanish companies and investors to invest in Florida."

Spain's economy is struggling right now but Ryll says he does not think that will diminish the delegation's efforts to attract new business. He says it helps investors focus on the best opportunities and Florida stands to benefit from that perspective.

"Spain is the twelfth largest economy in the world," Ryll said. "We're the 20th. There are over 300 Spanish companies operating in Florida and we're very interested in having Florida double its Florida-origin exports over the next five years. So this relationship is very, very important."

This is Gov. Scott's fifth business mission over the past year and a half. The others took him to Israel, Canada, Panama and Brazil.