Swapping coal for cement at Alcudia’s port

Es murterar power station. | plozano

Andrew EdeAlcudia's port30/01/2021 12:22

The port in Alcudia has been affected by two closures - the partial shutdown of the Es Murterar power station ahead of its complete decommissioning in five or six years time and the end of cement production at the Lloseta Cemex plant.
Little coal is now being imported for the power station. There will be less this year than last, as Es Murterar is scheduled to operate for only 500 hours later this year compared with 1,500 hours in 2020. The loss of the coal imports has affected jobs at the port, but there is compensation in the form of cement.

The Balearic Ports Authority has announced a tender for the operation of a second cement storage and distribution plant at the port. The authority says that this will “consolidate the importance of the Alcudia commercial port for the handling of bulk solids through the development of a logistics terminal in the port area itself”.

The first plant was greeted with objections from Alcudia pressure group Salvem el Moll and environmentalists GOB. When the town hall granted the licence for the plant, it noted that a pneumatic system was to be used that prevents the dispersal of particles. Despite this reassurance, concerns about contamination persist. The second plant will revive these concerns, there for years having been voices raised about contamination from coal dust (and not just at the port).

In 2019, the port received 16,860 tonnes of bulk cement. Since the Lloseta plant closed, all the cement used in Mallorca is imported through the ports. This may seem somewhat crazy, but then the decision to close the Cemex plant was a commercial one taken by a Mexican multinational and not a governmental one, as is the case with Es Murterar.