Minister Miriam Dalli announces closure of the 31st of March plant in Birżebbuġa
After 120 years of fuel storage and activity, the 31st of March fuel plant will be closing down. On Thursday, the last fuel truck made its exit from the current plant, as now journey and filling up fuel will be made at Ħas-Saptan.
This was announced by Minister for Energy, Enterprise, and Sustainable Development Miriam Dalli and Enemed Executive Chairman Kevin Chircop. They explained that thanks to an investment of €70 million at Ħas-Saptan, the plant in Birżebbuġa is closing down.
During a press conference at the Birżebbuġa plant, Minister Miriam Dalli announced that the government fulfilled another promise for the regeneration of Malta’s South.
“Today is a historic day for Birżebbuġa residents as they have long been waiting for this closure. Today we are fulfilling an electoral promise towards our communities. We are continuously working to give Birżebbuġa residents a locality that they deserve,” explained Minister Dalli.
“With an investment of €70 million, we are moving the fuel storage from the heart of Birżebbuġa to Ħas-Saptan, where this project will officially be launched in the coming months.”
The minister explained that with the closure of the 31st of March plant, Birżebbuġa will no longer welcome fuel trucks, where at least 44 trips were being made daily. Approximately, this resulted in 4.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year, noise reduction, and less pressure on infrastructure.
“Above all, this investment means that apart from having cleaner air, there will be fewer hazards close to the residents. There will no longer be any smells of fuel every time a tank is being filled or stored. With the closure of the plant, an investment in the environment, clean air and the residents’ wellbeing are being made. With the closure of this plant, this investment will be embellishing the heart of this locality,” added Minister Dalli.
The storage has been moved to a new facility, as now the 31st of March plant will be on cold standby for a while. During these months, the plant will be kept in case of an emergency to ensure power supply for the country. Afterwards, a clean and decommissioning of tanks will set off, so that eventually the tanks and all relevant contamination will be removed.
Next week, the last fuel tanker will go to fill fuel for the reserve in case of an emergency.
Present for the press conference were Enemed representatives, Regulator for Energy Services Eng. Marjohn Abela, Permanent Secretary within the Ministry for Energy, Enterprise and Sustainable Development Anthony Gatt and Birżebbuġa Local Council amongst others.
