The Government manages to pass the Sustainable Mobility Law after an ‘in extremis’ pact with Podemos that postpones the expansion of El Prat

With the unknown until the last minute and a new case of the absence of a deputy, the Government managed to approve this Wednesday one of the most important laws of the legislature, the Sustainable Mobility Law, that Podemos had put at risk by demanding in exchange the paralysis of the plans to expand the El Prat airport and the port of Valencia. A few minutes before the vote, the Ministry of Transportation announced an agreement with the purples that postpones this project until after DORA III, AENA’s investment plan between 2026-2031. That is, until at least 2032and in which it is committed to strengthening consultations and environmental requirements to carry it out, which has allowed the abstention of the four deputies led by Ione Belarra.

The agreement between the Government and Podemos has caused its four deputies to finally abstain in a very close vote and in which this afternoon another possibility began to open up, due to the absence of one PP deputy, who could have tilted the vote in favor of the Executive, even with the vote against Podemos. Finally, Congress approved the law with 174 votes in favor, 170 against and 4 abstentions, those of Podemos.

However, Transport sources maintained that they were negotiating with Podemos to ensure the vote, and the result is a statement from the Ministry of Oscar Puente in which it is committed that “the material execution of the expansion will not be carried out in DORA III [que va de 2027 a 2031]except for environmental or naturalization actions.

Likewise, Puente guarantees to Podemos that “a specific path” will be established so that the expansion of El Prat “is evaluated on a binding basis on its degree of adjustment in greenhouse gas emissions to the decarbonization objectives determined by the FITFOR55” of the EU and that it will “subject to a particularly intense process of public information and consultations with the different organizations and territorial administrations to promote participation and transparency.”

We can celebrate the agreement

Podemos has entered into an agreement that “has allowed” their abstention. “The Executive has publicly committed to postpone the works of expansion of the El Prat airport at least until 2031″ and the agreement “expressly states that the expansion of El Prat will not be included in DORA III, the regulatory document that plans airport infrastructure for the period 2026-2031”, the formation of Belarra has pointed out.

“In addition, the Ministry will be obliged to prepare a binding report by which any project for El Prat will have to comply with the emissions reduction objectives of the European Fit for 55 Directive. This text establishes a emissions reduction of 55% by 2030 and climate neutrality by 2050″.

A few hours before the vote, the purple deputy Javier Sánchez Serna had demanded “so that Podemos does not overthrow today a law insufficient and useless, we demand from you here and now a clear commitment, in writing, about what there will be no expansion from El Prat airport until after 2031, when DORA III ends.

Puente says that the pact “changes absolutely nothing”

However, Puente has assured after the vote on the law that the agreement with Podemos “absolutely nothing changes” with respect to the planned deadlines because the Ministry In no case does it count to start the works “on the track” until after the 2026-2031 period. As explained, AENA will take this time to carry out preliminary procedures, the preparation of the Master Plan, the environmental evaluation that justifies the public interest of the project and, “if everything goes ahead”, the drafting of the project and the previous renaturalization works, which do appear as something possible in the agreement with Podemos that this Wednesday served to save the Sustainable Mobility Law.

“It does not represent any variation“said the minister, who stated that the project to expand the El Prat airport “has a complex and long environmental procedure ahead of it”, although he did admit that the agreed text “reinforces environmental parameters” in a procedure that “is going to be exquisite” in a project that, he said, “it will be an environmental example.”

Puente has even speculated that, in the event that all the previous procedures were completed before 2031, the works on the runway would still not begin under the DORA III umbrella because, in this case, The next investment plan would be advanced, which would be DORA IV.

During the parliamentary debate this Wednesday, before the Sustainable Mobility Law was voted and the agreement between the Government and Podemos was confirmed, the Sumar deputy Alberto Ibanez has addressed the purple deputies – who at that time were still demanding “written documents” which later arrived in the form of a statement from the Ministry – to emphasize that “There will be no expansion of El Prat or the port of Valencia in this legislature. No matter how they get, “There won’t be one.”

AENA says that “the bulk of the investments” will be in the next DORA

According to the document of AENA with its projects in the 46 airports it manages between 2026 and 2031, the actions contemplated in El Prat are the “reconfiguration of terminals T1 and T2with improvement actions in the latter, and in its associated car parks, actions in the track 06R/24Lquick exit in the track 02/20, expansion of the runway and satellite”.

However, the document also specifies that “in the period 2027-2031, the Master Plan must be approved that will enable the expansion of the runway and the satellite associated with the new operation” and that “in this DORA, these two projects will be undertaken, as well as the acquisition of the necessary land and the associated compensatory measures.” “It’s a long process, with processing before the European Commission, so The bulk of these investments will be undertaken in the next regulatory period“adds the airport infrastructure manager.