Specifically, the order, proposed by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO), guarantees, proportionally, that at least one gas station remains open in all municipalities that have this type of facility. It also ensures that all the maritime poles that supply the fishing sector remain active.
The order, signed by the Minister of Health, Salvador Illa, as the competent authority, stresses that service stations and maritime posts constitute an essential service to be able to supply fuel, at this time, to other essential services such as the sector primary, food distribution chain or medical care. Their activity is also essential for workers who, in compliance with the measures established during the state of alarm, have to go to their post to provide, in turn, an essential service, such as the health professionals themselves, who work in power generation plants or those who guarantee telecommunications, among others.
Regarding gas stations, the ministerial order divides them into three groups:
one. The first group consists of those service stations that, in any case, must be kept open during the hours they normally provide, without being able to modify it.
This group includes:
- All service stations with a sales volume of more than 5 million liters per year. These types of facilities are usually located in strategic locations and have a high supply capacity. An additional criterion has been available for those provinces, autonomous cities or islands where no service station totals these sales, so that the main service stations in each of these territories are included.
- Gas stations located on motorways and highways, essential to support the transport of essential supplies and, at the same time, essential for the transporters themselves, by having services such as toilets, showers and food stores, which must remain operational in accordance with the TMA Order / 229/2020, of March 15.
- The service stations of hypermarkets, given that they are establishments that continue to be open in accordance with Royal Decree 463/2020, of March 14, which declares the state of alarm for the management of the health crisis situation caused by the COVID-19.
- Those automated facilities and, therefore, do not have personnel to attend the service, an issue that reduces the health risk.
- Refueling points with hospitality contracts for carriers, since they are necessary for certain drivers and logistics fleets because they are enabled to pay with certain fuel cards aimed at professionals.
- Gas stations that supply less common automotive fuels such as liquefied petroleum gases (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG).
- Service stations that, although not fitting into any of the previous criteria, are located in strategic environments, such as hospitals or logistics parks, or in non-metropolitan areas and, therefore, are necessary to provide greater capillarity to supply, with special attention to insularity.
Of the 11,676 service stations registered in the MITECO registry, one or more of the criteria determined for this first group of 4,334 service stations throughout the national territory, 37% of the total, meet. They will be available both on the MITECO website and on Gas Stations Geoportal.
two. In those municipalities where, as a result of applying Group 1 criteria, no available facilities have been identified, the highest-selling gas station will be required to remain open for a short time. It will need to cover at least 30 hours a week, with a minimum of five hours opening every Monday through Saturday. In the event that the selected stations previously had a shorter schedule than the one established in the order, they may keep it.
The changes in gas station schedules of this second group must be previously communicated to MITECO so that it is updated on the Geoportal Gasolineras platform and, thus, can be consulted by citizens at any time. Likewise, this new schedule must be visibly announced at the supply point itself.
Some 1,686 gas stations -14% of the total- must open meeting these requirements.
3. The rest of service stations that do not meet any of the criteria of groups 1 and 2, may freely set their schedules during the alarm state.
The changes in the gas station hours of this third group must also be communicated to MITECO for updating at the Geoportal Gas Stations and announced at the supply point itself.
The relationships of service stations included in each category may be modified during the alarm state if specific needs are insufficiently met.
Maritime posts
The order also establishes measures for the 77 maritime posts dedicated to the supply of fuel to fishing vessels, essential for the primary sector and the operation of the food distribution chain. All of them must remain open on their usual calendar and schedule.
The page https://www.miteco.gob.es/es/ministerio/medidas-covid19/ It will collect the list of the maritime posts, which is also available on the portal of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and at the Gas Stations Geoportal (geoportalgasolineras.es).
The measures established in the order published today, Saturday, April 11, are consistent with those set forth for the state of alarm by other ministries, such as the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda to guarantee the correct provision of goods transport services. essential by road, or by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to ensure the continuity of the activity of the primary sector and the food distribution chain.
All the information will be available to citizens on the MITECO website and, geolocated, on the website at Gas Stations Geoportal.