AFTER MONTHS of speculation and delays, the Portuguese government has announced that the site of Lisbon’s new international airport will be announced early next year.
The promise was given on Saturday by Prime Minister José Sócrates when he said that the final choice would be made following a comparative study of the pros and contras of Alcochete and Ota.
“The organisation LNEC, Laboratório Nacional de Engenharia Civil, will carry out a comparative study of the two sites in a way that the government will be able to make a final decision,” said the Prime Minister.
According to the Minister of Public Works, Transport and Communication, the report should be handed into the government by September. “The most important point is that the site should be economically and feasibly viable,” said the Minister, Mário Lino. This was from the point of view of costs, operational viability, air space management and environmental factors.
Until a few months ago, the Minister of Public Works favoured the Ota site for the new airport until President Cavaco Silva voiced his preference on Alcochete, following a report by the CIP (Confederação da Indústria Portuguesa) claimed that Alcochete was cheaper.
The Alcochete site is located on the south banks of the River Tagus at a shooting range (Campo de Tiro) on Ministry of Defence land.
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