Frances Leate
By Frances Leate
THOUSANDS of rare and endangered fish are at risk of death as Roquetas Aquarium falls further into financial hot water.
Due to a €9,500 unpaid electric bill, Endesa are turning off their electricity supply on February 7, which will cause the death of more than a thousand different species of marine life, including rare and protected fish.
The Aquarium, in Roquetas de Mar, Almeria, is the largest in Andalucía and has been struggling under a €3.5 million debt for several years.
Aquarium director, Enrique Fernandez, is in crisis talks with the energy company and the courts in the hope of postponing the switch off until the summer when the top tourist attraction will benefit from increased revenue.
Talking to the Spanish press earlier this week he admitted that, ‘things look bad’ because the survival of the animals depends on the electric power that powers the tanks.
It is thought a cash injection of 150,000€ would be needed just to keep the centre operating.
The owners- a consortium of Spanish businesses which includes the bank, Cajamar-have been unable to find an alternative aquarium in Spain big enough to take their stock.
Aquarium Roquetas de Mar opened in July 2006 but fell into financial difficulty in 2009.
The tourist attraction managed to stay afloat but has been struggling to pay its staff for several months.
“The owners- a consortium of Spanish businesses which includes the bank, Cajamar..”
You now you can always rely on the private sector when it comes to knowing how to run a business.
I wonder if the owners tried to drum up business by changing opening hours, reducing charges for pensioners and children, going into partnership with others to provide additional attractions etc, or as I have often seen with Spanish business there it is take it or leave it. I’m sure Cajamar can come up with enough money to pay the electric bills till they can find alternative places for these fish.
Oh no! This is horrible! What about aquariums outside of Spain??? They’re all over the US.
oh dont let them die, so sad
I am quite sure Endesa could not give a monkeys if all the fish die. Such a terrible company.
It’s not Endesa causing the fish to die. It’s the berks running the aquarium.
If I had of known it was there I would have visited. They need to market the pace better.
Surely they can come up with something? been to almeria past 2 years and didn’t know there was an aquarium or would have taken the children
Obviouly this is not good news, but operating at a loss of 3.5 million…………….
Wow, hi there but some realism, it dont work.
Offer the fish free yto good homes and close the doors, but it spanish owned so the fish are now worth 100 times more than you can buy them in a shop no doubt.
Great shame, make the system allow better for foreign company’s to invest as they understand how to make this type of business work.
Great Shame
HMV had a good business model. That´s what the aquarium should have implemented.
Can you imagine how many portions of fish and chips they could get out of just half of the current stock?.
Maybe it would cover the bills