The Board of Directors of the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB), in an ordinary session on 18 March, agreed to launch a public tender for the management of two tourism establishments at the lighthouses of Formentor (Mallorca) and Artrutx (Menorca). In both cases, the most advantageous bid will be selected and the corresponding authorisation will be granted for the operation of a bar-cafeteria-restaurant service.

The Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) improves the pavement surface on the sea side of the Camí de s’Escullera in the port of Palma. Pavements, foundation slabs, concrete factories and others that will allow the work to be done properly have already begun to be demolished.

The work ranges from the top of the APB headquarters to the access road to the commercial docks and is being carried out in a way that causes the least possible interference with the use of the port. For greater security, one of the access traffic lanes to the Paseo Marítimo has been shut off.

12 restaurants located in the port of Palma are participating in a pilot project for the collection of organic matter promoted by the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB). The initiative began in 2019 with a group of restaurants that started to separate their organic waste in specific containers, monitored in real time, and up to now they have collected more than 19 tons of organic matter. 

The Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) opens a tender for improving the energy efficiency of public lighting at the port of Alcúdia.

This improvement project, which is in the open tender phase, has an initial budget of 1,081,635 euros and an expected duration of 5 months from the official start of the works. The deadline for receiving offers is 25 March 2021. Interested parties may submit their applications through the APB Electronic Bidding Portal.

The Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) is installing a new lighthouse at Punta s'Esperó in Menorca. Work to replace the old one began in February and will last three months. The light source and solar panel have therefore been dismantled, and the old lighthouse, noted for its proximity to the sea and which had cracks and fissures in its reinforced concrete support structure due to corrosion of the reinforcement, has been demolished and will be replaced by another modular fibreglass and polyester one. 

The recent inclusion of the port of Palma in the Mediterranean Corridor as a node of the Trans-European Transport Network will enable the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) to participate in the Mediterranean Corridor Working Group and to propose and monitor projects that will make a significant contribution to the general objectives of that Corridor.

How does a person from Bilbao end up in Maó?

In Bilbao, there was a lot of competition for pilot jobs and I didn’t see a lot of opportunities. On the other hand, I had sailed for many years with Iscomar and the Balearic ports were familiar to me. So I sat the exam in Madrid in June 2000 and I have been in Maó ever since. I’m very content with the work I have done.

What training does a pilot have to do?

The Balearic Islands Port Authority (APB) has new vehicle scales in the port of Palma. The new system enables automated weighing that is controlled from the APB security gates at the entrances to the different restricted areas.

Since 2015, Palma's port facilities have had a weighing scale that can be used in both directions on the commercial docks, two scales (one inbound and one outbound) on the Poniente wharf, and another one on the Dique del Oeste (West dock).

The Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) has put out to tender the contract for the refurbishment of the first floor of Building A of the port of La Savina, situated in the Levante dock, between the Commercial and the fishing docks. After the refurbishment, the building will house the APB offices, which are currently located in the Casa del Mar building.

The eleven lighthouses in Mallorca and Dragonera will be equipped with a data-capture counting system to record visitor numbers. The data-captures will provide information on occupancy and trends in the usage of the facilities. Technicians have already begun installing the cameras and the entire network is expected to be up and running soon.

The project forms part of Mallorca Island Council’s ‘Smart Island Mallorca’ initiative. It aims to capture data on visitor numbers at places of cultural interest and tourist attractions and is being backed by public business entity Red.es