DO YOU WANT TO SEE THE DRILLING TAKE PLACE IN MAY?
You Decide…
At ASMAA, we regret that once again we are forced to deal with further disinformation doing the rounds, but this time we are leaving our traditional diplomatic manner behind. We are publicly doing this in an endeavour to set the record straight once and for all. Its our belief that each and everyone of you has the right to the truth and to the real facts. Its our way to showing our respect.
As you are by now probably aware, in the fight against the planned offshore drilling by Galp/ENI in the Costa Vicentina, three injunctions were submitted to court by various parties, and these are:
1. AMAL - n.º 598/16.1BELLE;
2. Município de Odemira - nº 165/17.2BEBJA;
3. PALP - nº 243/17.8BELLE;
NOTE. “All the injunctions embargoes actions during an initial period of time, which runs from the day of submission to court until the day that a judge reaches a decision on whether to accept the merits of the injunction application or to not accept it. However an injunction is always subject to the submission of a principal court case (the main case), whether that case is submitted at the same time as the injunction or later after a court decision on the specific injunction application has been made.
Taking above into account, the fact is that all three injunctions referred in the section above, were submitted with the intent to cancel the TUPEM licence, meaning, the intention was to stop the ENI drilling ship Saipem 12000 from drilling one well (or more) off the Aljezur’s coast.
And all, and we mean ALL three injunctions, were able as a result of the Portuguese legal process to place an embargo on the drilling. BUT EACH EMBARGO WAS ONLY VALID FOR A RELATIVLY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. (A few weeks). We not dreaming or making it up, these are substantiated facts, not unfounded arguments.
PALP’s injunction which was the last one to be submitted to court. On 2 May 2017 it was distributed to all the defending parties by the Administrative Court of Loulé, thus effectively placing an embargo on the TUPEM (and thus the drilling) on that date, and lasted just the automatic legal period allowed for in law. Meaning the embargo itself, lasted ONLY until 16 June 2017 , when it was lifted by the court.
And that is why in September 2017, the “Vos Purpose” (the ENI research and support ship) was able to performed the tasks, as part of ENI/GALP works in the concession area of Santola, because THERE WAS NO EMBARGO OF THE TUPEM LICENCE, as all the urgent applications (injunctions) had effectively been dismissed by the court.
And this is why we state that the only legal act that has embargoing power currently, and the only one that is able to halt the fossil fuels (oil and gas) exploration no offshore the Aljezur, was the decision taken by the Secretary of State for Energy, on 8 January 2018.
If negotiations did in fact take place about the merit of suspending the administrative legal right of the TUPEM, which resulted in a 3-month suspension of the administrative process, then in effect that administrative suspension, will ONLY benefit GALP/ENI.
Because the outcome (once the EIA process is finalised) is that they will be able to drill either this coming May, or if not convenient for them for any reason, they will be at liberty to drill in the first quarter of 2019, without being required to go through the whole bureaucratic TUPEM application process once again.
But does anyone really believe that GALP/ENI when they requested an extension to their contract by another year which was due to expire because they did not comply with their contractual obligations – meaning they did not drill their first well in 2018 as they were contractually obliged to do, that they would NOT USE as their principal justification the fact that they were prevented from complying BECAUSE THERE WERE "VALID" INJUNCTIONS stopping them from complying with the terms of the contract? Meaning that they would have used that argument as the main reason, after all there were valid injunctions with embargoing powers during a period of 8-months. Instead they used a mix of reasons to gain the extension, the temporary injunction suspensions being only one of them.
But all you need to do is to read their support arguments in the extension application documentation (which you will find in the attachment section below - but in Portuguese).
Maybe now, after all that we have disclosed, the disinformation that is so prevalent and created so much confusion, will STOP, because this massive disinformation campaign only benefits these that are on the other side of the trenches.
90% of ASMAA’s work is done in the background. We focus on gathering the facts and providing reliable and truthful information.
Now, we ask that if you do not want to assist and collaborate with what we do, that's OK, we don't have a problem with it, but at least STOP creating more obstacles and challenges than these that come naturally with the territory that we are in.
It is a fact that we couldn’t care less about your personal and/or political agendas, because at ASMAA we are focussed on where we going, and on what we do. But we leave a clear message to all: nothing nor anyone will STOP us from doing what we set-up to do. Which is to STOP all the contracts, and to see the undepinning law declared null and void.
We appeal to all that are really in this fight, with the intent of looking after the common interest of all of us and the planet, that YOU show your direct support. We are urgently in the need of funds. Keep in mind that May is just around the corner. And if they drill in May, our future will not be a clean one; instead we can look forward to a very dirty future.
BECAUSE OUR LIVES WILL NEVER BE THE SAME. We will not be able to replace anywhere else what the Algarve (Portugal) represents to each and everyone of us.
If there comes a time in one's life, during which one has to stand-up to slavish colonisation by the industry, as well as by the vested interests of a few, that are solely driven by greed - as they will attempt to steal our right to life, our right to good health, our right to a healthy environment, and to a bright future filled with hope and trust, then that moment is NOW!
All that's left is for you to INVEST in what YOU BELIEVE IN!
CONTACT
Laurinda Seabra (CEO)
Tel: 969 320 231
Email: info@asmaa-algarve.org
(*) Link to the request for information made by Bloco de Esquerda to Portuguese Parliament on 31/01/2018 (Anexado below as well - Portuguese)
