According to the newspaper El Correo this Thursday, the Basque Government has not refused to explore the possibility of gas in the Armentia-2 well of the capital of Alavesa, Subilla. Despite the fact that on 10 April the gas operation was "completely" discarded, the appeal filed against the City of Vitoria-Gasteiz to obtain the activity license is still pending in Administrative Dispute Room 3.
Sources from the Basque Government have explained to the newspaper El Correo that the public oil company SHESA "cannot ignore their property rights" with regard to the Subilla well in Vitoria-Gasteiz. SHESA wants to take advantage of the environmental declaration that the Ministry of the Environment granted it in 2019 to allow the registration and to know if this permission would resolve "the incompatibility" with the urban regulations of Vitoria-Gasteiz.
In any case, the new Climate Change Act prohibits the exploration and exploitation of underground resources and requires a commitment to renewable energies. Currently, the General Urban Management Plan of Vitoria-Gasteiz (PGOU) also prohibits this activity.
The case sparked a great deal of controversy, but the PNV was ultimately left alone in defending the project, after aligning all the opposition – including the PSE, a member of the government – against it.
Reviews by EH Bildu and Eguzki
Although sources from the Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and the Environment have stressed that exploitation "is still excluded", EH Bildu has asked the Basque Government to "immediately" withdraw the judicial remedy. "The time of hydrocarbon exploitation has to go down in history. The PNV has remained alone and continues to make progress, against everything and against everyone. It must recognise that gas based energy policy is over," said Mr Mikel Otero.
EH Bildu has announced that he will submit an interpellation in the Basque Parliament and a question to ask for explanations in the City Hall of Vitoria-Gasteiz. For the sovereign group, "the only solution is to abandon the obsession of hydrocarbons and to move definitively towards a just, planned and consensual energy transition as soon as possible, in order to decarbonize the territory as soon as possible before 2050".
For its part, the environmental group Eguzki has asked the Basque Government to refuse the extraction of gas and the "judicialization of permits". It has also asked the City Council "to shield the territory by means of criteria instruments on urban planning instruments and licenses, within its capacity and in accordance with the allegations in this regard".
