Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1511356
14 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 NOVEMBER 2023 Miriam Dalli defends Enemalta's consent for real estate on Qajjenza land JAMES DEBONO ENERGY Minister Miriam Dalli has defended Enemalta's decision to give consent for a real estate project proposed by a private developer on a site it owns in Qajjenza. Replying to MaltaToday's questions a spokesperson for the minister described the site as an "important financial as- set for Enemalta's operations" and invoked the need to strike a balance "between investment and green projects through different initiatives and invest- ments". The site in question is the de- commissioned LPG gas stor- age facility along the Qajjenza coastline in Birżebbuġa, which is substantially owned by Ene- malta. Katari Developments Limit- ed, a company owned by de- veloper Paul Attard, has filed a zoning application with the Planning Authority to pave the way for a massive residential and commercial development. Attard does not own any part of the site. Enemalta owns 13,561sq.m, the government 3,408sq.m and an additional 6,273sq.m are held by the Mifsud family. The ministry spokesperson said consent to Attard's appli- cation "does not impinge" on Enemalta's ownership of a sub- stnatial part of the site. Last week, MaltaToday re- vealed that Enemalta had granted consent to the zoning application, which seeks ap- proval for the type and volume of development that could be allowed in the area. The application envisages the development of four residen- tial blocks with a height rang- ing from four and eight floors and two four storey office blocks. The zoning application proposes a change in the local plan which currently limits de- velopment in the area to three floors rising to four floors by the seafront. Dalli invokes need to strike a balance According to the Energy Min- ister, the aim of the application presented by Attard is to "ask the Planning Authority to de- termine the uses, layout and buildings for possible future developments in this site with- in the development zone". Dalli pointed out that un- til recently, this property was used as an LPG depot and bottling plant. "Now that this operation has been relocated, the site remains an important financial asset for Enemalta's operations." She was replying to MaltaTo- day's questions as to whether consent for an application to allocate the site for real estate development defies Enemalta's corporate social responsibility, and whether she feels the land would serve a better social pur- pose if it is returned back to the community. Moreover, in view of Enemal- ta's consent for commercial de- velopment on the site, Malta- Today asked Dalli why a tender was not issued for the eventual transfer of the land to private developers. The minister insisted that the consent given by Enemal- ta's board of directors for the zoning application to be filed "bears no significance on the title of the site". "This does not impinge on Enemalta's owner- ship of part of the same site, nor did Enemalta transfer or sell any of its land," she said. With regards to the potential use of the site as a green space, the energy minister pointed out that Enemalta is also con- sidering regenerating an adja- cent plot of land it owns into a public space. She also referred to another project in the Qajjenza area, a few metres away from this site, which would see the San Luċ- jan oil depot developed into the proposed Siċċa project, which will include extensive green in- frastructure. "The government seeks a bal- ance between investment and green projects through dif- ferent initiatives and invest- ments," she said. Dalli also referred to the government's commitment to create new green open spaces by referring to four new sites which will be returned to the public for recreational purpos- es, three of which are locat- ed in southern Malta - Fgura, Bormla and Birżebbuġa. In Bir- zebbuga, she added, the project will see the Bengħajsa Family Park doubled in size, with a 20,000sq.m extension. More than 150 objections have been presented by resi- dents to the Qajjenza zoning application over the past days. Moviment Graffitti is also ob- jecting and has described any transfer of public land to pri- vate interests as "highly objec- tionable". It also asked the government to give serious consideration to restore the site into a a pub- lic green recreational space in view of intensive industrial de- velopment in the surrounding area which includes a power station and the freeport. Minister invokes 'balance' between green projects and investment while describing Qajjenza land as a valuable financial asset Bird's eye view of the site in Qajjenza, substantially owned by Enemalta,that once housed the LPG storage facility. Miriam Dalli (inset) says Enemalta's consent for a zoning application for the site filed by a private developer does not impinge on Enemalta's ownership. A site plan filed with the zoning application, showing the owenership structure of the Qajjenza site and plans for residences and commercial development put forward by Paul Attard's Katari Developments