The Government extends the privatization of the islands' ports

CitadelThe Balearic Government, with the support of Vox, has seized on the demands of the association of nautical clubs to perpetuate the concessions currently in place in three-quarters of the islands' ports, whose management is privatized. With the idea of updating the port law in force for twenty years and adapting it to state regulations, it proposes extending the indirect management of ports and marinas from the current 35 years to 50 or, in very exceptional cases, to 75 years. This change, which would allow the concessions, initially scheduled to expire in 2040, to be extended to 2055 or 2080, has raised concerns among the opposition, especially the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party), which has questioned in Parliament "the personal interests that may be hidden" behind this proposal.

Socialist MP Marc Pons, a former regional minister on the matter, has named the names: Juan Manuel Lafuente Mir. The current Minister of the Sea and the Water Cycle, who, as he admitted in Parliament, has not yet decided whether to accept the inheritance to share management of the moorings at the port of Addaia, in the northern Mercadal region, with his brother.

Conflict of interest

"Whether you accept it or not, the conflict of interest is already evident," Pons emphasizes, referring to the fact that one of the allegedly favored concessionaires is a direct relative of the minister. "It violates the Code of Ethics and the Good Governance Law," he adds, which is why he requests that everything related to the extension of the concession to the 12 existing marinas be removed from the law.

But the Socialists' suspicions go beyond the minister's ties. The fine print of the initiative presented at the end of July and taken into consideration this week also includes the possibility that, in addition to having a longer concession period, private companies that manage the marinas could build large commercial spaces on their facilities. "Up to 20 square meters per berth; that is, by managing 150 they could build a 3,000 square meter shopping center," calculates Marc Pons. "And not only that, but in exchange for being able to manage the ports for another 15 years, they will have to pay a maximum of 40% more to the Administration. This is equivalent to 2.5% annually, comparable to the CPI. Who are they trying to fool?" he complains.

To avoid raising suspicions and ensure better management of the regional ports, the PSOE deputy believes that "it would be better to call a new tender, so that whoever wins it can guarantee the improvements of all kinds that are required today." In this sense, the proposed extension of the reform deadlines should benefit only nautical clubs and non-profit organizations, "which are the only ones that perform a truly social and sporting function and which must be protected by the Administration."

It consolidates the "dual model"

The Director General of Ports and Maritime Transport, Antoni Mercant, emphasizes that it was precisely the initiative of the nautical club and marina associations that prompted the Government to propose this reform. In fact, it points out the importance that the new law will have to consolidate the "two models" that coexist in the management of the 43 ports owned by the autonomous community in the Balearic Islands, apart from the 4,000 moorings directly controlled by the Administration: "The model of the nautical clubs, which provide valuable promotion of social and sporting activities and are commercial entities that manage increasingly modern facilities and which, as they tell us, need new investments in order to adapt to everything that is now demanded of them in terms of sustainability, the collection and careful treatment of waste or water saving, which is to extend the concession period so that they can love.

The state law, which is now intended to be "harmonized" with the autonomous law, has already allowed the extension of concessions to the ports of Palma, Ibiza, Alcudia and Maó since 2011, but the Port Authority has not yet applied it for various reasons. It will be done in the ports that depend on the Government, which "generally has good managers and good facilities," he explains.

Only Andratx and Cala en Bosc are left out.

Mercante is relying on the "great social and business peace" brought about by the 2005 Ports Law to now promote its modification, giving greater leeway to current concessionaires. Only two remain unaffected: the port of Andratx, where management has been subject to judicial review for 23 years, and the marina on the Cala en Bosc lake in Ciutadella, in a precarious state since the concession granted 30 years ago to Nexport expired last April and Ports failed to renew it.

Mercant points out that, according to the wording of the law, concessionaires must make investments equivalent to at least 20% of the cost of the facility they manage, and that all investments must be duly justified. "We are only giving them greater economic and legal security," says the general manager, who flatly denies that this initiative is encouraging speculation and the enrichment of private companies. "We want to avoid the brutal speculation that exists in the maritime sector, which has always been seen as a very lucrative opportunity for companies in the sector," says Mercant, for whom Ports' sole objective is "simply to stimulate investment to modernize facilities, with the same conditions as state ports."

The concession fee will increase, but not as much as expected because, says the general director: "We don't want the awarding of the management of our ports to become an auction. It's more important to us to be able to invest and set maximum rates."

"The user will also benefit," he states, "since they will have better facilities and adjusted rates. Precisely, if the concession period were not extended, companies would be tempted to pass on the increase in the fee to small users, but by giving them more years." Mercant emphasizes that "Ports has the capacity to intervene in this area, and we will insist that space be given to smaller boats to ensure that popular nautical activities can be maintained."

Regarding the commercial use of the future facilities, Mercant downplays the possibility, as the moorings dedicated to this activity, whether in the form of charter boats, tourist vessels, or dry docks, barely represent 17% of the capacity of indirectly managed marinas and those for nautical professionals. "It's a smaller proportion than we expected and, therefore, has room to grow in the future," he comments.

What the PP and Vox proposal does not address is the impossibility of expanding existing ports. Therefore, it maintains what was approved in the 2005 law and leaves the increased demand for moorings in the hands of the buoy fields that both the state and regional governments are promoting in various parts of the islands. According to its calculations, by June of next year, 900 regulated anchorage spots will be available, even in protected areas.