Murcia, Spain – September 15, 2025
Legal Battle ends for Marina Owner Tomás Maestre
Table of Contents
A decades-long dispute over a prime Spanish marina has concluded, with the Superior Court of justice ruling against extending the concession held by the family of its founder.
- Tomás maestre’s company, Puertomenor, sought a 20-year extension to its marina concession.
- The court affirmed the concession expired in April 2023 after reaching its legal limit of 50 years.
- Puertomenor can bid on a new concession, but without preferential treatment.
- The marina, the second largest in Spain with 1,700 mooring points, is now in a transitional phase awaiting a public tender.
The Superior Court of Justice (TSJ) has definitively rejected claims by Tomás Maestre to maintain control of the marina bearing his name, the second largest in Spain with 1,700 mooring points. The legal decision effectively ends a long-running effort to extend a concession originally granted in 1973. The ruling confirms that the original 50-year concession period ended in April 2023, and no extension is legally permissible.
A Half-Century of Control
maestre,a lawyer and heir to the marina’s founder,requested a 20-year extension through his company,Puertomenor. However, the Ministry of Advancement refused to authorize the extension, prompting maestre to appeal to the TSJ. The court sided with the Ministry, upholding the 50-year limit stipulated by law.
Puertomenor argued that the company had invested 285,600 euros between 2016 and 2021 in the upkeep of the El Estacio bridge, a vital link for maritime traffic in the mar Menor and connecting La Manga to its northern areas. The court dismissed this argument, stating that such payments do not justify exceeding the legal concession limit. The court noted that extensions granted to other ports were based on original concessions shorter than the 50-year maximum.
Disputed Expenses and future Investment
Puertomenor maintains that the expenses related to the El Estacio bridge should have been covered by the Community or the City Council of San Javier, and that the payments were made with the expectation of a concession extension. The marina has been in a state of transition for three years, awaiting a public tender from the Ministry of Development to attract the necessary investment for rehabilitation. Partners have reported damage resulting from a lack of ongoing maintenance.
Several large companies have already expressed interest in bidding on the new concession, including the Fuertes Group and Luis del Rivero, the former president of Sacyr. The winning bidder will be required to invest over 44 million euros, including funding for the construction of an underwater tunnel in the Estacio canal-a project proposed by the San Javier City Council as a replacement for the existing bridge.
Why did this dispute occur? The dispute arose from Tomás Maestre’s company, Puertomenor, seeking a 20-year extension to its marina concession, which the Ministry of Development refused, citing the 50-year legal limit. Maestre then appealed to the Superior Court of Justice.
Who was involved? Key players included Tomás Maestre and his company Puertomenor, the Ministry of Development, the Superior Court of Justice (TSJ), the San Javier City Council, and potential bidders like the Fuertes Group and Luis del Rivero.
What was the outcome?
