Enemalta wants to connect illegal Gnejna boathouses to national electricity grid

Enemalta has applied to develop a 200-metre trench connecting an electricity feeder located in an existing car park to “nearby properties” at Gnejna.  

The properties in question consist of boathouses carved in the rock face which are on the receiving end of various planning enforcement orders issued over the past decades, including one covering the whole area issued in 2007.  

The enforcement orders issued against the commissioner of land and various landowners in the area are still pending action by the Planning Authority. 

A spokesperson for the corporation confirmed the planning application was submitted “to consolidate the existing electricity infrastructure in this area of Mgarr” and that the proposed development is required “for additional services the company is being requested to provide in the area.”

But when asked which properties would be benefitting from the development, Enemalta replied that it does not “divulge information about specific customers or applicants requesting its services” and that it “provides electricity services who fulfil the necessary requirements” found in application forms.

One of the requirements mentioned in the application forms is a compliance certificate issued by the Planning Authority.

The boathouses were built illegally by digging through the soft globigerina limestone or excavating the clay slopes on the sides of the headland. 

Most of the boathouses are used by fishermen to store fishing equipment.