The Council of Ministers has approved a new National Maritime Rescue Plan with a total investment of 163 million euros for the next three years. Despite Formentera ‘s repeated claims for a Maritime Rescue base, the Government has not allocated any direct investment to the island. Meanwhile, the Balearic Islands will receive about 30 million euros, with the installation of a new coordination center in Palma and the acquisition of new boats for Ibiza.
An unanswered millionaire investment to Formentera
The The National Maritime Rescue Plan 2025-2027 aims to modernize and strengthen the capacity to respond to maritime accidents and emergencies, with special attention to the incorporation of new technologies and the reinforcement of rescue and patrol equipment.
Among the main items of the plan, the following stand out:
- 84.6 million for vessel renewal, including two new tugboats, two patrol boats and six light fast-action vessels.
- 27 million euros for the acquisition of a rescue helicopter and the incorporation of drones for maritime surveillance.
- 30 million euros for the creation of a new coordination center in Palma de Mallorca, which will be added to the centers already in operation on the Spanish mainland.
- 21.4 million euros to improve environmental response to possible spills and to reinforce the fight against climate change in the maritime field.
Despite this large investment, Formentera remains without a Maritime Rescue base, a resource that has been claimed for years to improve safety in its waters. The island has reiterated on multiple occasions that the lack of an operational base slows down response times in case of emergencies, affecting both sailors and the residents and tourists themselves.
A new vessel
The exclusion of Formentera in the new plan contrasts with the millionaire investment in Mallorca and the recent incorporation of the Salvamar Naos in Ibiza, a state-of-the-art vessel that reinforces the operational capacity in Ibiza and Formentera.
However, from the Consell de Formentera warn that this reinforcement in Ibiza is not enough to ensure effective coverage in the waters of Formentera, where maritime conditions and high boat traffic in summer require their own base, a need that the flood of immigrants arriving in patera from Algeria makes even more evident.
Palma, the big winner in the Balearic Islands
While Formentera is still waiting for a solution, Palma de Mallorca will be the great beneficiary in the Balearic Islands. The city will have a new maritime emergency coordination center, which will improve the management and monitoring of incidents in the area. This base will be one of the most modern in the country and will centralize rescue and salvage operations throughout the archipelago.
The government has defended this investment by assuring that Palma is a key strategic point due to its location in the Mediterranean. However, for Formentera’s authorities, the decision not to include a base on the island shows a lack of commitment to local needs.
Formentera maintains its demands and demands answers
Given this situation, the Consell de Formentera insists on asking the central government for a clear response on the lack of investment in the island. In addition, they have announced that they maintain the need to have their own operational base for Maritime Rescue to avoid further endangering lives at sea.
