Press Release 9th October 2014

In December last year, Transport Malta had confirmed that a full nautical risk assessment would be carried out on the proposed gas storage tanker to be berthed at Delimara.

A nautical risk assessment studies the possible impacts that the gas storage tanker and its supply ships could have on nautical traffic within this bay, including on recreational and fishing boats.

Din l-Art Helwa had requested that the nautical risk assessment was to be completed before the planning permit was granted.The quantitative risk assessment included in Enemalta’s Environmental Impact Assessment had also recommended that a nautical risk assessment be carried out.

Notwithstanding these commitments and recommendations, however, MEPA went ahead with deciding and issuing the permits in March before the nautical risk assessment was concluded.

Furthermore, although MEPA had confirmed last year that a Cost Benefit Analysis on the new gas-fired power station and the gas storage tanker was being carried out – as part of the environmental IPPC (Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control) permit application – this Cost Benefit Analysis has still not been published.

Din l-Art Helwa is highly critical of the fact that the Nautical Risk Assessment and the Cost Benefit Analysis have not yet been published and requests the entities concerned to immediately make these two studies available to the public.