Encamp posts €9m Q3 surplus as debate rages over construction levies

The Encamp municipal government closed the third quarter of 2025 with a reported surplus of about €9 million. By 30 September the commune had recorded roughly €32 million in revenues against nearly €23 million in expenditures.

Members of the governing majority presented the figures as evidence of sound finances. Councillor Nino Marot said the accounts reflected a “good economic situation,” noting that some expected settlements from public works had not been included in earlier forecasts. Mayor Laura Mas pointed out that construction‑related levies accounted for about €3 million of the revenues and cautioned against reading that income as a direct indicator of sustained urban expansion.

The opposition contested that reading. Councillor Marta Pujol said the quarter’s rise in construction levy receipts was worrying, arguing those inflows were roughly 120% higher than the amount budgeted for the entire year. Pujol accused the commune’s urban‑development approach of encouraging excessive building and warned that the current model produces housing unaffordable to many working families and is unlikely to reduce market rents or purchase prices.

Officials reported Encamp’s outstanding debt at roughly €13 million and said the commune has financial instruments in place to cover unforeseen events. The publication of the accounts and the contrasting explanations from majority and minority councillors have prompted debate in the council over growth, planning and housing policy, even as the commune registers the quarterly surplus.

The local dispute echoes wider tensions across Andorra about the role of construction income in municipal budgets and the social effects of development. Recent controversy in Escaldes‑Engordany illustrates those tensions: the park and parking at Nacions Unides were closed after the property owning island 6 of Clot d’Emprivat notified the commune it would rescind a rental contract, a move that cleared the way for three new private buildings. Those projects rely on rights granted under the 2018 urban plan, which allowed more intensive development including towers of up to 20 storeys and a 15% mandatory land contribution.

Escaldes‑Engordany officials say they have worked to reduce the impact of the inherited plan. A 2023 modification to the parish’s urban plan raised the required free‑space contribution from 15% to between 50% and 64% for new developments, a change the commune says was key to preserving the Nacions Unides playground. Negotiations with the property and developers secured a new underground parking level with 132 communal, covered spaces to replace 72 existing places; 5.7 million of the 6.9 million euros developers owed in taxes and economic contributions will be offset by that dation, while the remaining 1.2 million was paid when the building permit was granted. The parish’s mayor, Rosa Gili, has publicly noted that the towers stem from rights approved under the previous administration and said regulatory changes can only be enacted on the timetable set by law.

Across parishes, patterns vary: some areas report a slowdown in construction‑related receipts amid moratoria and rising building costs, while others face disputes over new projects and compensatory measures for public space. Those divergent trajectories underscore the fiscal uncertainty municipalities face when budgeting around construction levies and development‑linked contributions.

Encamp’s leadership says the current surplus provides room to absorb contingencies and to continue funding services and projects. Critics argue the moment should be used to reassess planning incentives and housing measures to ensure new supply improves affordability rather than reinforcing speculative or exclusionary outcomes.