A geological study reveals that the terrain surrounding the Capbreton gorge is unstable, but not destabilised. It is a report by INELFE. INELFE is a company that promotes the electrical connection between the French and Spanish States, created by the Spanish Electricity Network (REE) and Réseau de Transport d'Electricité (RTE) companies association. “The latest studies, at the beginning of May, reflect the instability of the underwater soil,” the company notes: “A recent underwater detachment was detected.” Faced with the "unexpected" finding of this finding, he has announced that he will study the possibility of making alternative itineraries around the canyon.

According to the scheduled schedule, in May the main contracts for the design and construction of the work were to be tendered to process the administrative authorizations in June. These steps have been cancelled: “This will be done after the results of the additional tests have been obtained.”

INELFE expresses its determination to move forward with the giant, despite the obstacles: “This situation will not challenge the financial viability of the project.” The REE and the TEN remain "committed" to the project.

Darkness

The Mutual Support Network for Energy Megaprojects has criticised the attitude of INELFE. It has denounced that the submarine electric cable project has "serious problems" with "more than two months' delay" and that it has approved "without hardly any publicity". According to the Network, the soil instability of the Capbreton Foz, which reaches 4,000 meters deep, “is not new or surprising for experts and NGOs.”

The megaproject is already standing before starting, for at least a few months, in the image of the network. The network believes that this can lead to an increase in the budget for the work, which currently amounts to EUR 1.75 billion. Electricity companies would be trying to convey peace of mind, “without any foundation.” The Network believes that the possibilities for suspending the whole project are real.

Destructive Project

The submarine cable project is gigantic. The idea is to connect Gatika and Cubzenais (French state) by the sea, via a high-voltage cable of 390 kilometers in length. With a budget of EUR 1.75 billion, Europe has approved a subsidy of EUR 578 million for the European project. The largest ever granted to an electrical infrastructure. If this were done, the electricity traffic capacity between the Spanish and French states would almost double, from the current 2.8 GW to 5 GW.

The Spanish State Mutual Assistance Networks, the Gatika Electric Highway EZ and the Collectif des Associations de Défense de l'Environnement Pays Basque et sud des Landes (CADE) have been against the project. They have denounced that the project is "useless", that it has "a training expense" and that it is "harmful in many respects". According to these movements, the current electrical infrastructure can meet the needs of the infrastructure and further meet the needs of the infrastructure. In addition, “electric highways” would be built for the transport of electricity to the interior that would reach from the coast to the coast: High voltage lines Gûelles - Mar y Castejón in the Basque Country. All these works would result in significant ecological damage to the sea and to the land. These include health problems arising from electromagnetic pollution.