The Gingko investment fund, which has purchased the old power station in Alcudia from Endesa, has a plan to build five blocks of apartments as well as undertake the redevelopment of the power station.
Alcudia's mayor, Bàrbara Rebassa, says that Gingko approached the town hall and the Council of Mallorca about a year ago and presented a project that included apartments and a logistics centre. "We told them that this did not fit with our project."
Alcudia TechMar is this project, and Rebassa explains that at a meeting a week ago Gingko agreed to undertake its development. "But what concerns me is that they wish to do this in exchange for building five blocks of apartments when there are regulations that prevent this." The apartments, it is understood, would be built near the Torre Major, a watchtower that dates from 1599 and protected as an asset in the cultural interest since 1949.
The Alcudia TechMar project would see the power station turned into a cutting-edge research centre for energy transition and the decarbonisation of the Mediterranean. A Council of Mallorca process is currently under way to declare the power station an asset in the cultural interest. This would mean that much of the site would be preserved but would also finally allow a redevelopment to go ahead.
Endesa have explained that Gingko have experience of regeneration projects, the sale of the power station having been for a "symbolic" amount. The town hall and the Council of Mallorca say that they haven't been formally notified of the sale or the purchase price. It has been estimated that the cost of decontamination alone would be around 20 million euros.