PALP, the Algarve Free of Petroleum Platform, has lodged an "administrative legal action challenging the act that allows the Galp-ENI consortium to carry out exploration drilling" off Aljezur.
PALP’s action follows the first injunction against the TUPEM licence which was lodged by Odemira council just over two weeks ago (See report HERE).
This legal action was accepted by the Lisbon Supreme Court on Tuesday on May 2nd, and has resulted in the Odemira injunction placing a hold on any proposed drilling by Galp/ENI until the full legal process started by the Odemira council has run its course.
PALP contests the licence process which it claims, “violates EU law, and national law.'
From the concession holder's viewpoint, "Galp guarantees a safe, sustainable operation that does not impact the population or the environment."
PALP, is a group of environmental associations, informal community groups and individuals that are against the exploration of hydrocarbons in the Algarve, in their press release stated that they filed their injunction on March 27, 2017 against the Ministry of the Sea and against the Directorate General of Natural Resources (DGRM), with the aim to try and thwart the start of oil drilling off the Southwest Alentejo coast.
PALP points out "the complete lack of usefulness of the public consultation process promoted by the DGRM in the Galp-ENI concession procedure because the decision already had been made before the public participation stage.
Also, because the weight of more than 42,000 signatories against the granting of the licence was ignored.”
The petition PALP refers to, organised by anti-oil campaign organisation ASMAA, was not mentioned by the DGRM when issuing the licence to the consortium, despite the petition representing a clear rejection by the public of the State’s plans for oil and gas drilling off the Algarve and Alentejo coastline as part of a hydrocarbon based economic model.
PALP says this latest injunction is another step in a struggle that has been under way for some time, and that it will continue to strive for a sustainable future for an economy based on sustainable forms of energy.
