The new concession to operate the Marina Botafoc marina will have a term of two years plus a third extendable one. It will be a new Temporary Occupancy Authorization (AOT) of a minimum of 24 months and a maximum of 36 months depending on the date of final approval of the Special Plan of the Port of Ibiza, an instrument that is initially approved, pending the resolution of the allegations filed and the final approval, for which there is no date. This was approved by the Board of Directors of the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands in the session held on Wednesday. The term of operation of the new concessionaire will begin in March 2025. It will be, therefore, two more years, at least, of interim in a concession that requires significant investments. In fact, the Special Plan contemplates a deep remodeling of the whole area. La Voz de Ibiza had already advanced that these were the intentions of the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands in relation to one of the jewels in the crown of the port of Ibiza. At least for its interests because of its economic contribution to the coffers of the port authority. Not in vain, the APB earns a whopping 10 million euros per year fixed and 4% of the turnover of the concessionaire. The APB has justified the new patch contrary to a long-term concession, between 20 and 30 years, which allows to amortize the important investments that “this installation requires”, in the absence of the Special Plan. The object of this contest is the choice of the most advantageous solution for the granting of an administrative concession for the management and operation of a plot of ninety-seven thousand square meters, of which forty-three thousand square meters correspond to land area, on which stand a series of buildings for commercial uses, a service station for the supply of fuel to pleasure boats and an area for docking and repair of boats. In addition, more than fifty-four square meters of water mirror are contemplated in which the mooring service is provided to 432 boats distributed in five pontoons. The annual occupancy tax will be 2,215,013.76 euros and the activity tax is established as 4% of the turnover.
Investment and royalty
Now that the term of the concession has been revealed, the structure of the bidding documents that will determine the criteria to be met by bidders and the weight of the fixed fee to be paid by the concessionaire, a sort of rental of the facilities, is yet to be determined. the technical proposal and the investments to which the concessionaire may commit.
This model is the same that has been used in the case of the facilities that had been occupying the Club Nautico de Ibiza and are now in the hands of Port Nautic Ibiza, of Ports and Sustainable Coasts. The nautical employers Pimeef, with its president Ramon van der Hooft at the head, had redoubled its pressure in recent weeks to avoid a new patch in the form of temporary authorization. To no avail. “The port has deficiencies in sanitation, electrical and lighting networks,” lamented from the nautical employers, stressing that the pavement is also in deteriorated condition, adversely affecting stores and restaurants operating in the area. The skyrocketing prices are also in the spotlight. If the concessionaires pay a lot to the Balearic Port Authority to take the concession, it is inevitable that this amount will be passed on in the rates of moorings and premises. ” It is essential to prioritize the adequacy of the sanitation and lighting networks, the improvement of the pavement and pontoons, as well as the general cleanliness and commercial aspect of the port, above the economic fee offered,” insists the association.
Millionaire royalty
The current concessionaire of Marina Botafoch is Ocibar under a Temporary Occupancy Authorization for 18 months, extendable for a further nine months, as it will be. The company pays 9.6 million euros a year to the Port Authority for the operation of the area, plus 4% of all revenues. Ocibar itself was the company that won the previous authorization, in this case another 2+1, starting on December 30, 2022. It was an illegal award, according to a ruling by the High Court of Justice of the Balearic Islands. It should have won Servicios Portuarios Botafoch, SL, whose sole administrator is the lawyer Francisco Javier Jiménez de Cisneros, who is also behind 12 Millas, the company that denounced the rigging of the Ibiza Yacht Club investigated under the case ports. And is that the offer of Ocibar breached the bases as it contemplated more transit moorings, the most lucrative, than those authorized. Incomprehensibly, the Port Authority did not exclude the offer for this reason and gave it for good with corrections, which was key to its nullity.
Area 6: demolition and parking
Marina Botafoch is one of the areas that will undergo a major transformation once the expected Special Plan has been approved. The current nautical-sports, catering and commercial uses and the current building will be maintained, although the two current apartment buildings will be demolished, as residential uses are prohibited in the port area, except for own staff. New ones will be built for port services. In addition to the remodeling of the port infrastructure, the plan calls for a subway parking garage.
