There are fundamental principles that we believe cannot be touched when the Government is dealing with businesses, GRTU CEO Abigail Mamo said yesterday.
Speaking with The Malta Independent Editor-in-Chief Rachel Attard on Indepth, Mamo maintained that in the case of the proposed Corinthia project, these principles are being trampled on.
"We agree with projects, progress, and more tourism in Malta, but not at the expense of leaving certain principles behind. It is because of this that we cannot totally agree with the project," Mamo said.
The Corinthia chain, which is owned by International Hotel Investments (IHI), will be given similar concessions on the price of land in St George's Bay as those given to the DB Group for the development of the City Centre project in St George's Bay, Konrad Mizzi said. Maltese MPs will be asked to waive the condition that any development on the site takes place solely for 'touristic' purposes, in order to develop a luxury hotel and mixed-use project.
On the basis of the draft contract calculations, Corinthia will pay a compensation of €51.4 million for the waiver of the restriction on mixed-used development, and a €17 million one-time premium.
The draft agreement - seen by this newspaper - stipulates that this premium will be paid in instalments. "(a) The first of such instalments in the amount of €4,000,000 is payable as to €1,000,000 upon execution of the deed and a further €3,000,000 within three years from the date of this deed; (b)and the balance in the sum of €13,000,000 shall, subject to any reductions in accordance with the provisions - of another clause - be payable on a pro rata basis with respect to each portion of net internal saleable area designated for Office and/or Residential use on the Effective Date". This amounts to the €17 million premium payment.
This whole scenario occurred just before the Christmas period.
Earlier this week, the government said it is considering submissions made by stakeholders on a deal reached on the transfer of land in Pembroke to be converted into a six-star complex by Corinthia.
In a statement on Wednesday, the government said it is trying to understand what the concerns are. Currently, very positive discussions are underway with Corinthia to address reasonable concerns, the government said.
The government statement was issued to deny allegations published in today's edition of the Times of Malta, under the heading 'Corinthia deal talks reopen after warning.'
The Times of Malta alleged that the government has reopened talks with the Corinthia Group to modify the terms of negotiated agreements on projects on the St George's Bay peninsula after receiving legal advice that EU state aid rules could be breached.
On Thursday Lawyer Ivan Mifsude filed a judicial protest against the Prime Minister and the Minister of Tourism over the Corinthia Group's planned project in St George's Bay.
Mifsud argued that media reports had stated that the project would include unlimited rights to reclaim the seabed around the peninsula and build on it for purely commercial purposes.
from The Malta Independent http://bit.ly/2ROqDM6
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