Ever since the Spanish government approved a second cable to supply electricity from the mainland to Mallorca in March 2022, there has been vociferous opposition in the municipality that will be affected by this - Alcudia.
The opposition has been on environmental, heritage and health grounds. The government and Red Electrica's preferred option for the cable to enter is the Bay of Pollensa. When it was revealed that the small beach of S'Illot was the proposed entry point, there was a storm of protest. Alternative points on the bay have met with similar rejection.
An association of residents against the cable - VAAC - has been lobbying for the cable to enter via the Bay of Alcudia instead. But the entry point has been far from the only concern. There is then the land route to take the cable to the substation by the Es Murterar power station. The opposition on health grounds is because of the potential proximity of the cable to residences and the risks posed by the electromagnetic field.
While some objectors don't want the cable at all, there seems little chance that Alcudia won't be the chosen municipality. Alcudia is on the other side of the island to where the first cable entered - Santa Ponsa - and Red Electrica wants the second cable to be distant from the first for security reasons. There is also the fact that a substation for high-tension supply already exists in Alcudia.
On Thursday, VAAC representatives held a meeting with Alcudia's mayor, Fina Linares, and two officials from the Balearic government - Ana Torrens, the director-general for the natural environment, and Maria Paz Andrade of the urban coordination directorate. The aim was to initiate the process to try and find a consensus as to the route.
Linares said that more information has been asked for. "We want to know what studies have been carried out to date and to then be able to assess options that are the least harmful. With all this information, the three parties - government, town hall and residents - will work together to propose a viable route."
Sebastià Pujol of VAAC added that they were grateful for the government's "total willingness" to find solutions.
Parties at the town hall, governing and in opposition, are united in their concerns about the cable. The previous administration lodged an appeal with the Supreme Court in Madrid against the Spanish government's proposals. This failed as the court ruled that there was not a definitive route.
Although there are many residents who believe that there is a definitive route, the mayor pointed out that an environmental impact report has yet to be requested. "That will be when we know the exact route."