The fifth section of the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the Supreme Court has estimated the appeals presented by Ence and other entities against the judgments of the National Court that annulled the extension, approved in 2016 by the Government then led by Mariano Rajoy, which determined the continuity of the factory in the Pontevedra estuary.
Specifically, the resolution, of January 20, 2016, granted Ence a 60-year extension (it would end in 2073) of the concession for the occupation of a strip of public maritime land domain destined for the pulp mill in Pontevedra.
The Chamber has reported that it considers that concessions prior to the General Coastal Law of 1988 can be extended, as is the case, “as long as there are favorable environmental reports”. In the matter analyzed, he remarks, “there were favorable reports from the Administration on this matter.”
Ence celebrates it
Ence celebrates that the decision of the Supreme Court (TS) known this Tuesday “clears up the uncertainty” about the pulp mill in the Pontevedra estuary, since it will be able to continue with the concession of the land until 2073. In this context, the president of the company , Ignacio Colmenares, promises dialogue with society, also with the groups “most critical” of his activity, with whom he plans to meet.
We want to continue listening to everyone’s voice, responding to the concerns of our environment so that, together, we are able to make visible everything we contribute to this community, as well as to continue advancing and improving”, he stated, through a statement sent to the media after learning that the Supreme Court has upheld Ence’s appeal against a previous ruling by the National Court that knocked down the extension of the concession decided by the Government of Mariano Rajoy in 2016.
This invitation to dialogue “and to active listening”, adds Colmenares, “also includes the groups most critical of the activity of Ence Pontevedra”, who are invited to a meeting “to find meeting points and ways of collaboration, for the benefit of the whole society”.
The company expresses its “satisfaction” with this judicial decision – the content of the sentence will be known in the coming days – because it “clears up the uncertainty” also of the “5,100 families linked” to the activity of the pulp mill and because it allows continue “focused on creating sustainable wealth and employment” in Galicia.
Ence stresses that its Lourizán biofactory is going to “be part of the future of Pontevedra and Galicia”, to which the firm “wants to add value” and contribute “to sustainable development and including and listening to everyone”.
The company estimates a positive impact of around 169 million on the company’s profit in 2022, as a reversal of the impairment of assets and provisions for expenses that it registered in the 2021 financial year as a result of the judgments of the National Court that had annulled the extension.