The Espluga de Francolí, in the region of Conca de Barberà (Tarragona) ) will have its connection with the Tarragona Water Consortium (CAT) network terminated in September next year.
The municipality, which has been supplied with water tankers and occasional water cuts for two years, will thus receive water from the Ebro River and will finally be able to solve its supply problems, both for the population and for the industry.
The works will consist of a pipeline that will leave the CAT network in Montblanc and will reach the end of L'Espluga. They will cost around 1.7 million euros, of which the Catalan Water Agency (ACA) will contribute 1.2 million euros and the Tarragona Provincial Council 445,000. The city council will complete the rest.
The idea of connecting the municipality with the CAT network dates back to 2003. In 2021, a first tender was made for a work that was supposed to cost 1 MEUR, but which with the extra costs derived from the war in Ukraine has increased by 70%. "It is the most important project in the democratic history of L'Espluga. It solves a real, serious, endemic problem that affects the entire Esplugue population," highlighted Mayor Josep Maria Vidal.
On the other hand, the council has also improved the water supply network, with the replacement of 4,000 meters of pipes. Some works that will be added to others promoted by the local government, such as the opening of two new wells to expand the collection possibilities, but above all they must minimize the leaks that have been occurring for years.
Likewise, the city council will increase rates for consumers, which until now "were very low", as the mayor himself and the director of the ACA, Samuel Reyes, have acknowledged. In this sense, large consumers, such as industry, will be the ones who will notice the increase the most and may pay a maximum of four times more than two years ago. Vidal assured that the increase for families with low consumption will be small. In addition, this increase will also be conditional on the number of tanker trucks that must be carried in the coming months. The more vats that arrive from Montblanc, the higher the bill will be.
This should compensate for the expenses that the city council has assumed so far. Vidal has specified that in the last two years they have had to allocate "just over 500,000 euros" in this concept. "We had been carrying 35 trucks a day, and now we are carrying ten," he said. A reduction explained by the drop in consumption since summer. For now, they will continue with the arrival of trucks and nighttime water cuts.
