A new profile of the controversial Gama pulp and paper factory proposed in Lugo, Galicia, has been published today by BankTrack in collaboration with the Environmental Paper Network (EPN) and Greenpeace Spain. The profile is presented in BankTrack’s ‘Dodgy Deal’ database, which collects information about harmful companies or projects financed by banks.

This profile comes at a moment of growing public outcry, as protests continue to mobilize communities across the region, with a new demonstration scheduled for next Sunday, June 1st. The upcoming protest “Nin Ence na Ría, Nin Altri na Ulloa” (“No Ence in the river, Nor Altri in the Ulloa”) opposes the new project and its impacts on the river, and demands the Spanish government withhold any public funding.

The Dodgy Deal profile exposes the destructive impacts of the project, which has been proposed by Greenfiber, a joint venture of Portuguese conglomerate Altri (75%) and Spain’s Greenalia (25%). The profile highlights the devastating impacts on biodiversity and endemic species, along with high water consumption levels that exceed the amount consumed by the entire population of the province of Lugo; around 325,000 people. It also projects an increased demand for eucalyptus plantations, adding 190,000 hectares in the region of Spain where these crops are already most densely concentrated, increasing wildfire hazard.

With growing concerns that this harmful project may proceed despite local resistance, the information provided on the profile is crucial to ensure that all relevant stakeholders, including potential financiers, are fully aware of the negative consequences this project will inflict on people’s health, local ecosystems, economies, and traditional livelihoods.

The May 8th protests in Madrid, led by the Ulloa Viva Platform, Ecologists in Action, and Greenpeace, mark the latest chapter in a wave of large-scale demonstrations opposing the project. On May 4th, over a hundred boats took part in a protest along the Ulla River, underscoring the widespread regional opposition. Last December, more than 100,000 people protested in the capital of Galicia, Santiago de Compostela. A follow-up protest is planned for June 1st in Pontevedra.

"Our communities have spoken clearly," said a spokesperson for Ulloa Viva. "We cannot allow public funds to support a project that threatens our waterways, ecosystems, and livelihoods."

The total estimated cost of the project’s first phase is €900 million. Altri is seeking up to €250 million in public aid from the Spanish government. The remaining funding will come from private or development finance institutions.

Strongly opposed by tens of thousands of local residents, associations and businesses, the Gama project threatens ecosystems, livelihoods, health and water quality, posing a reputational risk no responsible bank or investor can afford to ignore.