Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1110343
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 28 APRIL 2019 NEWS JAMES DEBONO THE licence of the former Savoy Hill fuel station in Slie- ma, green-lit by the Planning Authority for relocation to a 3,000sq.m site outside the building zones in Luqa, has been acquired by construction group Bilom. The relocation of the small kerbside fuel station to agricul- tural land in the vicinity of the Water Services Corporation in Luqa was originally granted to landowner Raymond Brincat back in 2018. But the Bilom representative Nathan Bartolo has now re- placed Brincat in the PA's re- cords for the Luqa petrol sta- tion application. New planning rules encour- aging the relocation of urban petrol pumps to larger plots outside the development zones have increased the val- ue of these licences, allowing businesses to develop mega fuel stations with ancillary re- tail units. Data from the Regulator for Energy and Water Services (REWS) shows that the Slie- ma Savoy fuel station licence changed hands twice before its final transfer to the company Bilom Service Station Ltd in 2019. The records only list the names of companies, with in- dividuals' names omitted due to data protection. A REWS spokesperson said that "some of the transfers occurred due to decease of the licence hold- er or due to family reasons." Bilom had already applied for a fuel station licence along the Coast Road in Bahar ic- Caghaq, also outside devel- opment zones, but this fell through for being in breach of policies that only foresee the relocation of existing fuel sta- tions to ODZ areas. The only exception is when new fuel stations are set up adjacent to industrial areas. Since 2015, 14 fuel station licences have changed own- ership. Five of these cases in- volved transfers to companies owned by the same owners of the urban pumps. Petrol stations which saw a change of ownership include the Rizzo service station in Birkirkara; the Laguna station in Mosta, which was trans- ferred to Abel Energy; the Mgarr service station in Gozo, transferred to J.D.G Holdings; the Caruana station in Mar- saxlokk; the Palmex station in Sliema, transferred to Michael Attard Services Ltd; and the Ta' Balal station in Luqa. Seven petrol stations were taken over by new owners be- tween August 2013 and No- vember 2015. These included one from Msida's Edgar Borg & Sons to Luqa Developments, a company owned by Ludwig Camilleri, who later applied to relocate the station to the Ra- bat road in Attard; Cassar Fuel Station bought a licence in Lija and Tarxien while giving up another one in Ghajnsielem; Brighton Garage sold a licence for a petrol station in Floriana to Seaview and Sons, the same company that owns the Pit- stop station in Attard. Fuel stations: construction giant acquires relocated licence CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Subsequently, the policy will have to be discussed in parliament's standing committee on the environment and fi- nally be submitted for the approval of the minister. Short of a moratorium on decisions related to pending applications until the new policy comes in place, the PA board may still end up approving fuel stations under the 2015 policy. While the timeframes of public con- sultation are dictated by law, much will depend on the length of time taken by the PA to assess the public feedback and on whether changes to the draft are made following the pub- lic consultation. It took the PA a full nine months to issue the policy draft after a first six- week consultation held in June last year on the 'objectives' of the policy. Under the revised policy, existing kerbside fuel stations not deemed by the PA to create issues of amenity, safety or transport will not be eligible for relocation; those located partially or fully outside development zones shall also not be eligible for relocation; and the redevelopment and change of use of existing fuel stations located partially or fully in ODZ will not be considered. Only an existing fuel station can be relocated to the following areas: designated industrial areas and SME sites; areas of containment; open stor- age sites identified in the Open Stor- age Policy; other areas designated for development in the local plan but ex- cluding residential areas and residen- tial priority areas, and urban conser- vation areas. However, in these cases, there will be no limit to the fuel station footprint with additional facilities, while other relocated fuel stations in other areas shall have a footprint not exceeding 1,000sq.m. Relocations will still be allowed out- side development zones, but not on agricultural land as was the case with the five ODZ petrol stations permit- ted in Maghtab, Luqa, Marsaskala, and two sites in Burmarrad. In the new policy these sites must not be "related to agriculture and/or animal husbandry, which results in a wider environmental benefit and is compatible with the context of the ar- ea" – again with a maximum footprint not exceeding 1,000sq.m. Under the 2015 rules, petrol stations are allowed on agricultural land which is deemed not to be of good quality. Sites already occupied by permitted fuel stations will still be allowed to up- grade. But the upgrades will be limited to dispensing facilities for alternative fu- els and electric charging stations, and ancillary facilities for vehicle main- tenance services such as a car wash, but excluding all forms of retail and catering facilities – as is the case with a pending application for the Pit Shop fuel service station in Attard which is still being assessed. They may still include an ATM and vending machines. Under the new rules, fuel stations cannot be located on agricultural land, areas of high landscape value or designated for nature and landscape conservation such as Special Areas of Conservation and Tree Protection Areas, scheduled sites or a site within 100m from a scheduled site. "Moreover, the proposal should not negatively impinge on areas protected for their scenic value or buildings or structures which, in the opinion of the PA constitute 'landmark buildings' and whose context deserves protec- tion from visual intrusion." Fuel stations cannot be located within 300m from a ground water source that is used by the Water Ser- vices Corporation for the abstraction of groundwater intended for human consumption, such as boreholes, un- derground galleries of pumping sta- tions and spring water systems. The planning permit for a relocated existing station will condition the de- veloper to a planning obligation in the form of a legal agreement to the decommissioning of the existing fuel station. The new fuel station cannot start op- erating unless the existing fuel station is first closed. The related infrastructure – under- ground tanks, dispensers and canopies – are to be decommissioned before a compliance certificate for the new fuel station is issued. Fuel stations permitted by this pol- icy document, not used for a period of three consecutive years within 30 years from the date of the issue of the permit, will have to be demolished at the expense of the owner, "and the site has to return to agricultural state". Absent from the draft policy is the existing ban on petrol stations being relocated within a 500m distance of an existing petrol station in the same di- rection of traffic, which forms part of the 2015 policy rules. Revised rules reduce size of fuel stations