Moorings to be rented by the day and hour

PALMA
YACHT skippers and boat owners will be able to rent moorings in the Balearics by the day or even the hour under proposed new port legislation.
It appears that the new Balearic government is going to finally tackle the issue of mooring shortages and is also going to lift the freeze on the mooring waiting list which has been in place since 1993.

The vice-president of the Balearic Port Authority, Manuel Patiño, announced the government's intentions yesterday saying that while the mooring waiting list was devised nearly 15 years ago, the system has never been put into effect.

Patiño explained that the port authority wants to ease the pressure on existing marinas and ports, especially during the summer months when the region's marinas become saturated and struggle to cope with demand. The port authority is going to start will a pilot scheme in the Port of Pollensa where new moorings are going to be created. The new scheme will then be introduced to the rest of the islands' ports and marinas.

Patiño also revealed that a number of other initiatives to ease the pressure on marinas are being studied including the day or hourly renting of berths. “This way, marinas will be able to be more flexible and meet demand,” he said yesterday.
The news will be welcomed by the Balearic nautical industry which has been crying out for administrational help for years.