The Return of Alicante Port's Mega-Deposits to Court

The Platform for a Sustainable Port continues its legal battle against the project to install mega-deposits by the company XC Business 90 at Alicante Port. In this new attempt, they target what they consider the core of the proposal and request the annulment of the concession granted in 2019 by the Port's Board of Directors.

Santiago González Baras, a professor of Administrative Law at the University of Alicante, has crafted the appeal submitted to the Superior Court of Justice of the Valencian Community, seeking the annulment of the concession. The case's lead lawyer will be Inmaculada de la Fuente. The platform argues that the planned installation by XC Business 90 is "a bomb" incompatible with a port integrated into Alicante's urban area.

According to their explanation, the appeal highlights a dozen irregularities that, in their view, justify the annulment. The lawsuit is filed six months after they requested the Port Authority to review the concession ex officio, without receiving a response.

For González Baras, the key issue is the absence of an environmental impact statement. The jurist notes that, thanks to the work of civic entities, the Ministry for Ecological Transition has responded in this regard. They claim the MITECO replied to their request, confirming the mandatory nature of the report and requiring the Port Authority to submit all documentation. "The Ministry not only reaffirms the need for the report but also addresses the Port, another state administration, with a surprisingly harsh tone," the expert emphasizes.

Among other reasons supporting the lawsuit is a possible project fragmentation—two phases: initially eight deposits and twenty more later. The platform believes this strategy was designed to avoid environmental assessment, which they think "would not have passed due to the proximity of protected assets in the Natura 2000 Network and other figures."

They also argue the lack of external safety reports. The platform claims to have approached the Conselleria to request them, without success, and denounces the breach of the 1995 agreement between administrations for the removal of CEPSA deposits, as well as the lack of a proximity report and the risk of chain accidents.

González Baras is optimistic about the appeal, especially due to the Ministry's requirements to the Port Authority. He estimates that a ruling could be reached in about a year.

The Platform for a Sustainable Port describes it as "inconceivable" that no administration has opposed as strongly as "simple civic entities." "Neither the central government, nor the regional nor the municipal have been able to defend the city and its economic model against a project of these characteristics," denounces Sol Garcín, spokesperson for the platform.

The entity expresses concern not only about the danger posed by the mega-deposits but also about the associated activities. They claim that if built, tankers the size of the Prestige would sail through Alicante Bay, and spills into the sea would affect all the city's beaches. Additionally, they criticize that the concession does not include safety measures against extreme weather phenomena, such as danas, or seismic risk.

For all these reasons, they regret that the Port Authority has not used existing legal mechanisms to rescind the concession. "From the administrations, we have seen nothing but makeup and political posturing," says José Manuel Santa María. This resident accuses the judge who granted the environmental license by judicial mandate of "gross misconduct" and believes the ruling violates all European legislation and judicial doctrine.

The platform asserts that it has invited the City Council to join the lawsuit, which it has refused. They also do not understand how the business sector has not mobilized against the installation of the mega-deposits.