According to information released to a journalist on 4 February, the Galp / ENI concessionaires say that everything has, in fact, been suspended. And they stated that the withdrawal of the contracts from the DGEG website was only a formality that was already scheduled to take place on 31 January.

ASMAA takes this opportunity to inform all those who have been following the anti-oil drilling legal process currently taking place in the Administrative and Fiscal Court of Loulé, that the court hearing, scheduled for 11 February at 2:00 p.m., was canceled by the court yesterday.

A ASMAA informa todos os que têm seguido esta luta a decorrer no Tribunal Administrativo e Fiscal de Loulé, de que a audiência prévia, marcada para 11 de feveiro às 14h00, foi ontem cancelada pelo tribunal.

De acordo com informação divulgada a um jornalista no dia 4 fevereiro, as concessionárias Galp/ENI dizem que tudo foi, de facto, suspenso. E reafirmam que a retirada da página do DGEG foi apenas uma formalidade que já estava prevista no dia 31 de janeiro.

ENI says that "a delay is inevitable." Meaning that there will be NO DRILLING in 2018 in the Aljezur sea, we also need to take into account that current contract expires in January 2019.

Prospeção de petróleo ao largo de Aljezur: ENI diz que “adiamento é inevitável”. Contrato termina em janeiro de 2019.

Apesar do facto de a ASMAA, em junho de 2016, fevereiro e dezembro de 2017, ter levado 42.295 objeções públicas à Assembleia da República Portuguesa, contra a concessão de licença de perfuração à ENI / Galp, encabeçando assim uma grande petição popular contra a referida concessão, as petrolíferas representadas pela nata das sociedades de advogados da ENI / Galp, com o total apoio do Governo Português contestaram a nossa Ação Popular desafiando a legitimidade da nossa ação jurídica, ignorando que a referida Ação Popular interposta pela ASMAA representa todas as pessoas e organizações que se opuseram oficialmente à perfuração planeada em Aljezur.

In spite of the fact that ASMAA, in June 2016, February and December 2017, represented 42,295 public objections in the Portuguese Parliament against the granting of drilling licence to ENI/Galp, a pack of big legal guns employed by ENI/Galp with the full support of the Portuguese government, is challenging the legitimacy of ASMAA’s Class Action, representing all those individuals and organisations that objected to the planned drilling in Aljezur.

So much clouding has been thrown about the date that ENI’s drilling ship Saipem will be allowed to enter Portuguese waters, and start drilling, that we at ASMAA feel its important to clarify a few issues and to place things in context.

On Friday, 6 April 2018 a major lawsuit against the state got underway in Portugal. The lawsuit was lodged by ASMAA in a class action representing everyone that signed a petition that was dismissed by the Portuguese parliament on 21 December 2017.