The Chamber of Commerce warns that investments in water infrastructure are late and may be insufficient

BarcelonaThe Barcelona Chamber of Commerce has warned this Monday that a significant portion of the water infrastructure investments planned in response to the drought episode that affected Catalonia between 2021 and 2024 are delayed or, in some cases, stalled, including the Tordera and Foix desalination plants. Likewise, the business organization has warned that European regulations require administrations to invest more in water purification and regeneration, which may necessitate future increases in investments in this area.

During the drought period, the Generalitat approved a series of projects to improve and expand water infrastructure in Catalonia. In total, investments are planned to increase the country's water resources by 311 cubic hectometers (hm³), with a total value of 2,531 million euros to be executed before 2030.

Of these, the Chamber's Water Transition Observatory currently estimates that approximately 378 million euros in investments are underway with no foreseen delays, representing a capacity of 34 hm³ (of which about 12 million and 8 hm³ are already completed, and another 132 million and 33 hm³ will be completed this April). Furthermore, projects worth 813 million euros and 100 hm³ are in the study phase, also within the planned schedule.

Conversely, there are investments worth 1,146 million euros, which will provide an additional 167 hm³ of resources, that are in study or execution but are already less than a year behind schedule, while other projects worth 195 million euros and an additional 10 hm³ are more than a year behind schedule. "There is no room for further delays," stated Alicia Casart, director of infrastructure studies at the Barcelona Chamber.

Among the most delayed projects, the Tordera (where one already exists) and Foix desalination plants are highlighted as a "red alert," as they are "subject to an agreement to launch construction," but have not yet begun, Casart explained. "The undefined issue is financing," she clarified.

Furthermore, Casart has assured that the legislation of the European Union includes "a great demand" on all public administrations to include, above all, investments in water treatment and regeneration. This community regulation requires "many investments that far exceed those already foreseen", added the head of infrastructures of the chamber entity. In this regard, she stressed the importance of carrying out projects, especially in the Besós river basin, so that it has "a regeneration system like the one that already exists in the Llobregat".

Commitment of the Generalitat

The Vice President of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and President of the swimming pool multinational Fluidra, Eloi Planes, has described as "good news" the fact that "the Government maintains its commitment" to the investment plan. "We have been lucky that it has rained a lot, but let no one be mistaken: it will rain very little again. The Government will not lift its foot off the accelerator," said, for his part, Miquel Sàmper, Minister of Business and Labor of the Generalitat, at the award ceremony for Catalan companies that have implemented the Savings Plan.

The Chamber has awarded some fifty companies that carried out outstanding investments to improve their water efficiency. According to the Observatory's calculations, the companies achieved savings of 11.9% compared to water consumption during the drought episode, which represents a reduction in consumption of 31.6 hm³, which are added to the 24.5% reduction thanks to investments in the years prior to the drought. Planes highlighted that the companies have made these investments "out of their own pocket", that is, without public aid.