The Director of Costs was dismissed after backing the withdrawal of the concession of the Formentera xibius

PalmaThe technical services of the Directorate General of Coasts and the Coastline concluded in November 2025 that there were sufficient grounds to initiate the expiry procedure for the concession of seasonal services on the beaches of Formentera. The report, to which ARA Balears has had access, expressly proposes that the competent body issue the agreement to initiate the procedure, considering that "several essential conditions" of the concession title have been breached. In other words, the criterion set by the head of the Coasts and Coastline service was to end a concession of bars and restaurants that had breached the law. Given this forcefulness, the already ousted Director General of Coasts, Maria Joaquina Ferrer – who is also a civil servant – considered that there was no other path than to follow the technical and legal criterion.

Her proposal, however, did not please certain high-level instances of the Executive. The intervention of the Minister of the Sea and Water Cycle, Juan Manuel Lafuente, ended in a series of confrontations and discussions between the head of the Ministry and the former Director General. The background was very simple: the Government did not want more problems with the concessionaires of Formentera — bars and beach bars that, despite having breached the regulations, claimed that "until now" they had not been so demanding. The Consell de Formentera also intervened to avoid an outcome considered very negative, which meant taking away the concession from some entrepreneurs. The denial was about to occur, but Ferrer was summarily dismissed and now the decision is on the table of her successor, Joan Jaume Mulet, who has the task of ending the tensions in Coasts.

Sources consulted by ARA Balears confirm the economic importance and social significance of economic activities on public land on an island like Formentera. In fact, it is considered certain that the modification that Marga Prohens included in the Omnibus Law to allow beach bars to be larger and with fewer distance requirementsis attributable to the demands coming from the smaller Pitiusa.

A forceful report

The conclusion of the report on the Formentera concessions is forceful. After analyzing the documentation, inspections, and technical reports incorporated into the file, it is maintained that the detected non-compliances affect "essential elements of the concession" and that, if the Coastal Law and the General Coastal Regulations are applied, it is appropriate to initiate its termination.

Among these non-compliances, technicians highlight that the kiosks were not dismantled during the mandatory period between January 15 and February 15, that several cannot be considered truly demountable, that two located in Los Arenals do not respect the minimum distance required from other establishments, and that it has not been proven that all bathrooms linked to the kiosks are for public and free use, as established by the concession title.

The report dedicates a significant part of its legal reasoning to explaining that these obligations do not constitute mere administrative requirements, but rather "essential conditions of the concession" due to being installations located on public maritime-terrestrial domain on natural beaches. In this regard, it recalls that the regulations require kiosks to be temporary and completely demountable, and that the obligation to remove them annually is a guarantee for preserving public domain.

Technicians also emphasize that the lack of final works certificates and the recognition act prevents verification that the executed installations match those authorized. The report recalls that condition 21 of the same concession title expressly states that "non-compliance with this condition will necessarily lead to the initiation of the concession termination file".

Article 79 of the State Coastal Law

The technicians' proposal is based on article 79 of the State Coastal Law, which regulates the causes for the expiration of concessions on public maritime-terrestrial domain. The report recalls that the concession itself provides for expiration when conditions expressly qualified as essential are not met and concludes that, in this case, there are sufficient indications to formally open the procedure.

Furthermore, the legal services consider that the accumulated indications are enough to move from preliminary investigations to the formal initiation of the file. "The current density of indications is sufficient to open the expiration file," the report literally states, recommending action "without further delay" to avoid prolonging a situation of uncertainty about the legality of the installations.

The complainants are considering going to court

This is precisely the point that the former concessionaires of some of Formentera's kiosks are denouncing, who have announced that they will go to the administrative contentious jurisdiction if the Government does not act before the first week of September.

In a statement released this Tuesday, they maintain that the discussion is no longer whether there were or were not indications of irregularities, but that the Administration itself has concluded, through its reports, that the expiry procedure must be initiated. According to one of the former concessionaires consulted by ARA Balears, "what cannot happen is that a high-level technician, responsible for the service, proposes the expiry of a concession and nothing happens. The law must be the same for everyone".

The complainants lament that so far the competent body has not agreed to initiate the expiry procedure, nor has it responded regarding the precautionary measures they had requested to provisionally suspend the operation of the kiosks. As they explain, the Coastal Law and the conditions of the concession oblige the Administration to act in the face of non-compliance with essential conditions, which is why they accuse the Government of keeping an file paralyzed that the technicians had already considered sufficiently well-founded.

In this context, the complainants warn that if the Government does not certify the initiation agreement, identify the responsible body, and effectively promote the procedure, they will go to the courts so that the administrative contentious jurisdiction obliges the Administration to fulfill its legal obligations.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of the Sea and Water Cycle has resolved this Tuesday part of the seasonal installation files for Formentera, mainly related to sunbeds and umbrellas, in order to try to calm spirits and the political crisis a little.