Cross-party support as Malta defines its exclusive economic zone

Malta is set to define its own exclusive economic zone as parliament debates legal changes making it possible for developing economic activity outside its territorial waters.

The proposed changes to 39 different laws were put forward by the government and enjoy the Opposition’s support.

Prime Minister Robert Abela said this development will allow the country to expand and diversify its economy without taking up land.

The next step after the amendments are approved, Abela said, is for government to issue international calls for projects in the EEZ. “At the forefront of these potential projects are those in the energy sector,” he added.

“We want to exploit this potential outside the Maltese territory to produce renewable energy that leads to the vision we set for the Mediterranean to be a clean energy hub and Malta a leader,” Abela said.

Abela acknowledged criticism of renewable energy projects carried out on land, saying that it is not easy to have solar farms or wind farms in a small country like Malta.

“Although everyone agrees with the need to have such projects, you often end up having to ruin beautiful places in the countryside. This is why we thought to adopt new technologies that can work beyond our shores,” he said.

Finance Minister Clyde Caruana, who is piloting these changes, said formalising Malta’s EEZ will give potential investors peace of mind.

He said the EEZ will stretch beyond 12 nautical miles (the stretch of sea up to 12 miles is deemed to be territorial waters) up to 25 nautical miles. He insisted, however, that this did not mean Malta will develop all this stretch of sea but define individual EEZs within this area depending on the projects being considered.

“There is enough space around us in the sea to develop for economic activity without having to bicker with any of our neighbours,” Caruana said.

He added that there will be no projects on Hurd’s Bank, which is a shallow area in international waters off the Marsaskala coastline used for bunkering purposes by ships. “We do not want any of the new projects to disrupt this important location for the shipping industry.”

Government is considering options for floating wind and solar energy farms; the possibility of developing clean hydrogen; and fish farms.

Opposition MP Carm Mifsud Bonnici welcomed the legal changes as “a triumph without triumphalism”, adding that the geopolitical situation in the Mediterranean today allowed the country to pass such laws without creating discord in neighbouring capitals.

He also saluted past Nationalist administrations for resisting international pressure for Malta to give up its large search and rescue area at a time when migration was a cause for bickering with Italy.

“The message given then was that Malta was not going to give up any inch of the seas under its responsibility and that was important because it reaffirmed our sovereignty as a country that today allows us to declare the creation of EEZs,” Mifsud Bonnici said.

He agreed with Caruana that most of the areas do not conflict with competing claims from neighbouring countries but suggested that in disputed areas Malta should propose international protocols of how these could be utilised.

Mifsud Bonnici said it was also important for the country to develop its capacity to manage any oil spills that could occur in the seas around Malta.

Opposition MP Eve Borg Bonello questioned why it took government so long to have a change of heart in considering offshore wind farms.

The incoming Labour government in 2013 had put previous plans for a nearshore windfarm on hold, subsequently abandoning the idea altogether.

Opposition maritime affairs spokesperson Ivan Castillo agreed with the Bill, emphasizing the importance of creating a legal framework that is compliant with the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea.

Castillo said the country needed foresight when allocating the areas and zones for different projects, keeping also in mind Malta's strategic location in the centre of the Mediterranean's shipping route.

"Navigation routes must not be affected as Malta does benefit from these routes especially when 33% of sea traffic passes between the Straights of Gibraltar and the Suez Canal," he said.

He added that the potential for Malta to become a green energy hub exists but this also required studies in relation to the risks associated with ship traffic.

Castillo said bunkering activity at Hurd's Bank should not be disrupted since this gives the Maltese shipping sector a competitive edge but insisted the sector can continue to flourish if economic development zones are used "responsibly and correctly".