Tanklux in Mertert: authorisations granted, but Grevenmacher and Mertert-Wasserbillig set out to delay the expansion

Grevenmacher Mayor Monique Hermes and Mertert-Wasserbillig Mayor Jérôme Laurent acknowledged in an interview with RTL Radio on Wednesday, 11 November, that they are deliberately relying on delay, RTL Today reports. Both municipalities want to stop Tanklux from expanding its fuel storage at Mertert port from about 60,000 m³ to 150,000 m³ — seven new tanks holding 90,000 m³.

The project already has its administrative authorisations. The Mertert-Wasserbillig municipality's website refers to the authorisations in file 1/2019/0530, "Extension of the oil depots at Mertert port"; Tanklux states on its website that the project "has been authorised by the competent administrations" and that its environmental impact studies have been validated. According to RTL Today, the authorisations were granted in October by the Inspectorate of Labour and Mines (ITM) and the Environment Agency. There is no building permit yet: the project has not reached that stage, and Mayor Hermes said she would not grant one at this time.

The municipalities are preparing a recours gracieux — a request to the authorities that issued the authorisations to reconsider or withdraw them. It is not yet a court case: if it is rejected, the municipalities plan to go to the administrative court, RTL Today reports. The mayors acknowledge the process will be lengthy, and that is the strategy: they hope a decline in cross-border fuel tourism and the spread of electric cars will eventually make the expansion unnecessary. Mayor Laurent said construction itself would take 60 months, or five years.

Mayor Hermes said the tanks would stand close to residential areas, a water treatment plant, a campsite and Grevenmacher's Butterfly Garden, calling the expansion "simply incompatible with the quality of life of citizens". Mayor Laurent said the port is poorly protected — the site can be entered by climbing a wire fence — and that its protection against drones falls well below modern standards. The Grevenmacher executive has had no direct discussions with Tanklux and has not sought any, the mayor said.

Tanklux presents the project as a matter of supply security. Every EU country must hold strategic fuel reserves equal to 93 days of consumption, and Luxembourg requires 10 of those days to be stored on its own territory; according to the company, expanding to 150,000 m³ would increase the country's contribution to these mandatory reserves. The company also states that the site is audited every year by the ITM and the Environment Agency.

Residents who object to the authorisations can sign a list at the Grevenmacher and Mertert municipal offices until 30 November 2026 inclusive. By Tuesday, 10 November, 50 signatures had been collected in Wasserbillig and 250 in Grevenmacher, according to RTL Today. If the company ultimately obtains all the required authorisations, the municipality would face real uncertainty about its next steps, Mayor Hermes acknowledged.