Biscay Marine Energy Platform (BiMEP)

The technological development and the geographical characteristics of the Basque Country provide suitable preconditions for the production of marine energy, including wave and offshore wind. Furthermore, the presence and level of development of the naval industry in the Basque Country are determinants for the wave energy sector to be considered as a strategic and promising sector in the Basque Country. In this context, in 2008 the Basque Energy Board (Ente Vasco de la Energía-EVE) set the BiMEP project in motion.

The installation of BiMEP was administratively complex; it involved the participation of both national and local administrations. Several ministries and departments participate in different sections/steps of the administrative process. Such administrative process generally shares the following common structure:

• Step 1: consult with the Spanish Ministry for Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs (the Spanish environmental agency) about the need for conducting an Environmental Impact Assessment 
• Step 2: Apply for the administrative authorisation from the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade to conducting the works and for the declaration of Public Use from the Provincial Industry and Energy Dependency of the Spanish Government Delegation in Bizkaia 
• Step 3: apply for the concession of marine-terrestrial public domain, which is a two-step process and involves the Spanish Ministry of Public Works and the Ministry for Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs. 

Step 1: in accordance with Article 16 of Royal Decree 1/2008, the Promoter (EVE) initiated the environmental procedure in 2008. In order for the Ministry to make an informed decision on whether or not an Environmental Impact Assessment was needed, three documents/steps were required:

• 1A. Project submission, including the objective, description and location of the project
• 1B. Submission of an environmental analysis document, covering the following aspects: a) actions that may cause environmental impacts throughout the different stages of the project (i.e. planning, construction, operation and abandonment), b) potential environmental impacts of the project, c) mitigation and corrective measures/strategies to offset the potential negative environmental impacts, and d) an Environmental Monitoring Plan of the project.
• 1C. Consultation with stakeholders, which is to be carried out by General Directorate for Environmental Quality and Evaluation of the Spanish Ministry for Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs. In this case, the consultation process included key stakeholders, such as fishermen guilds (cofradias[1]) and environmental NGOs, amongst others.

A preliminary Environmental Impact Study (EIS) of the BiMEP Project was undertaken in July 2008 by AZTI-Tecnalia. The full EIS was commissioned by EVE and carried out by AZTI-Tecnalia in December 2008.

In April 2009, the General Directory of Quality and Environmental Evaluation of the Spanish Ministry of Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs requested additional information about the project and its impacts. In order to respond to this request, in April 2009 the complete EIS was sent to the above mentioned General Directory and, in parallel, a personal meeting was held with their representatives.
Based on a detailed analysis of these three documents/steps, the Spanish Ministry for Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs made the decision for BiMEP not to be subject to the full Environmental Impact Assessment process in June 2009. The analysis of the EIS had concluded that no significant environmental impacts were expected as a result of the implementation of the BiMEP project. Furthermore, most stakeholders consulted about the potential affection of the BiMEP did not envisage significant impacts on habitats, protected species or environment as a result of the implementation of the BiMEP.
Due to the uncertainties around environmental impacts and the lack of reference data, the Environmental Statement recommended the implementation of the environmental monitoring program suggested in the Environmental Impact Study.

Step 2: For obtaining the administrative authorisation and public use declaration of the installation of the BiMEP infrastructure, the Promoter (EVE) submitted to Spanish Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade and the Provincial Industry and Energy Dependency of the Spanish Government Delegation in Bizkaia several documents, which included, a) the preliminary draft of the project, b) an environmental analysis document, and c) an economic evaluation analysis document.
In accordance with the provisions of Articles 125 and 144 of Royal Decree 1955/2000 and Article 27 of Royal Decree 1028/2007, the preliminary draft was submitted for public consultation and reprints were sent to key administrations and stakeholders:

• The City Council of Lemoiz, the General Directorate for Planning, the General Directorate of Ports and Maritime Affairs, and the General Directorate for Fisheries and Agriculture of the Basque Government, as well as the Basque Water Agency did not provide any feedback. 
• On the other hand, the Department of Public Works of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia, the Bilbao Bizkaia Water Consortium, the General Directorate for Fisheries and Aquaculture of the Spanish Ministry for Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs, Iberdrola (Spanish energy company) and one local citizen did provide feedback, indicating interest mainly on technical aspects, to be considered in drafting the execution project. All requests for additional information were duly addressed by EVE at this stage. 

Based on the outcome of the consultation process, the Spanish Ministry for Industry, Tourism and Trade (of the General Directorate for Energy Policy and Mining) authorized, in 2011, the installation of BiMEP, and stated its declaration of public use.

Step 3: In 2011, the Promoter (EVE) proceeded to tackle the final step and obtain the concession of marine-terrestrial public domain which was granted on the 6th of February 2012.
Once authorisation for the project execution was granted, contracts were awarded for the supply and installation of submarine power lines and ground cables, in November 2012 the first works started with the horizontal drilling for the installation of the submarine power cables. In September 2013 the works for the installation of submarine cables started. 
The environmental monitoring program started in August 2011 in its preoperational phase and was undertaken by AZTI-Tecnalia. During construction works, the environmental monitoring for the construction phase was carried out. 

BiMEP was officially inaugurated in July 2015.

During the public consultation process of the EIS in the framework of the EIA process in Spain, some amendments and comments to the EIS developed in 2016 were done by different stakeholders. Thus, in 2018 a new EIS was developed by AZTI in order to correct, respond and improve those aspects and amendments indicated during this public process. This new EIS was presented in February 2018. 

On the 31th of May 2018, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and Environment of the Spanish Government decided to grant environmental approval to offshore wind testing and demonstration projects at the BIMEP test site.

[1] Spanish cofradias (fishing guilds) are institutions with and old tradition that in some cases dates back many centuries. Their aim is to assure collective economic exploitation of fishing resources in coastal area. The cofradias are the institutional system for more than 80% of the employment in fisheries in Spain. In addition, more than 50% of landings are under the control of cofradias. It is a clear distinction between cofradias and other organizations such as boat owners associations or producer organizations. The cofradias are related exclusively to coastal fisheries while the other organizations deal with industrial fisheries. The cofradias are organized democratically and both the crew and the boat owner have representatives in the executive bodies. These institutions are well recognized by the Spanish and regional law and can propose management rules in their area of influence such as fishing time, allowed fishing gear and area and time closures. The rights of cofradias can be considered a form of territorial use rights in fisheries (TURFs).