Making waves in Puerto Banus

The holder of the concession to run Puerto Banús has applied to the Junta de Andalucia to extend until 2067 the term of operation of one of the most exclusive marinas in southern Europe and this has sparked legal action between the company and some of the tenants of businesses in the area.

The disagreement between the concessionaire and some of the traders is mainly due to the use of the terraces of the premises by some businesses in the port. The business owners accuse the concessionaire, Puerto José Banús S.A., of showing “bad faith” by charging them for using spaces which, according to them, are public property, said the legal representative of the traders, the law firm BGI-LAW.

The concessionaire denies that Marbella Town Hall is the owner of the spaces where the terraces of the premises are located and said that they are included in the concession area. “The alleged conflict only exists for some traders who have tried to speculate with the concession land, subletting space owned by the concessionaire without the latter’s authorisation,” the company added.

The traders, most of whom have premises located on the front line of the marina, accuse the concessionaire of “unilaterally imposing abusive conditions” on them to exploit premises that, according to the businesses, belong to the Town Hall, which has led them to file three lawsuits against Puerto José Banús S.A. for the annulment of rents.