The Algarve authorities are against the privatization of the multi-municipal waste management company ALGAR. AMAL – Comunidade Intermunicipal do Algarve, an entity that brings together the 16 Algarve municipalities, approved a motion to oppose the company's eventual exit from the public sphere, considering that «the objectives of public interest will not be safeguarded in this privatization process».
The public position was taken after the meeting of the Intermunicipal Council of AMAL, the body that brings together all the mayors of the Algarve, last Monday. At issue is the draft decree-law that approves the bases for the concession of multi-municipal urban waste systems.
In the approach to this Government bill, AMAL assumes «the same position as the National Association of Portuguese Municipalities (ANMP) and considers that it neglects the role of municipalities in the entire cycle of urban waste management».
A privatization of ALGAR, «progressing as provided for in this draft diploma, will negatively affect the quality of service provided to the users of the systems (municipalities and citizens), the efficiency of these systems and the practice of socially acceptable tariffs, since in this matter there is no reference to the efficiency and fairness of the tariffs'.
"AMAL also considers, like ANMP, that it is not permissible to oblige user municipalities to have an exclusivity regime and, as a consequence, to articulate their collection and transport systems to the options of a private company, and then allocate them exclusively to the The Government has the power to monitor the Concessionaire's compliance with public service objectives, without any reference to the intervention of municipalities, either in their capacity as forced partners of a system, or in their capacity as legitimate representatives of the population and of the public interest," he added AMAL, in a position statement sent to the newsrooms.
Another issue raised by the Algarve's municipalities is the “fact that the draft diploma protects the private operator to the detriment of the public sector”. This is because the chambers are subject to an "exclusivity regime for the delivery of their waste", as well as penalties to apply "in case of non-compliance with a contract imposed on them", when "non-compliance with the contract by the private party is not an object of any sanction'.
At the same time, the maintenance of shareholder agreements is not ensured, since the Government's proposal does not contain "any clear rule that, in an exhaustive way, establishes the mandatory maintenance of such agreements".
"AMAL also understands that any amendments to the statutes of the company "ALGAR – Valorização e Treatment de Residuos Sólidos SA, namely those intended to be carried out through the draft decree-law in question, may only be carried out at the general meeting" , defends that entity.
Another argument of AMAL is the fact that ALGAR was created by public entities, «which was a determining factor for municipalities to access the transfer of urban waste systems to it, without any public tender». "In this context, the hypothesis of transfer to private parties must, at least, deserve the expressly declared agreement of all municipalities", they demand.
ALGAR's shareholder structure is made up of EGF – Empresa Geral do Fomento, which holds the majority share capital, with 56 percent, and the 16 municipalities of the Algarve, with the remaining 44 percent. ´
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