January 2023

OIL giant Repsol is joining forces with agricultural organisation ASAJA to transform agricultural and livestock waste into renewable fuels. ASAJA, which represents 200,000 farmers and livestock breeders in Spain, has signed a collaboration agreement with Repsol t to ‘promote projects that focus on the circular economy to promote sustainability in rural areas’. They will pool […]

VALENCIA’S Fallas festival in February and March could be getting a firecracker ‘quiet zone’ to offer some respite for both humans and their pets. Valencia mayor Joan Ribo has indicated he will look at the possibility of a daily time slot when firecrackers cannot be set off. The Fallas start on February 26 culminating in

SITUATED just 15 kilometres apart, it is not surprising that there are so many ties between Morocco and Spain. No more is this felt than in Andalucia, where the Moorish influence on the local cuisine dates back 1,300 years. The Moors were here from 711 until 1492 and so unsurprisingly left an indelible mark on

THE recent arrest of two men trying to smuggle 190 kilos of elvers through the port of Algeciras has once more thrown the spotlight of this unusual but highly lucrative international contraband trade. In the latest incident, border agents stopped a vehicle coming from Tangier in Morocco. Inside it they found coolboxes filled with the

A number of British expats, and even a Spanish national, have come forward with worrying stories about their struggles to claim their pensions in Spain.  It comes after the Olive Press reported on a pair of expats, who were locked in battles with the country’s social security office to claim retirement money owed to them. 

TIGER mosquitoes carrying serious diseases have found Spain’s mild autumn and winter weather perfect for extending their seasonal presence. The species usually becomes active in April before disappearing in mid-November, but have been more prevalent with the higher temperatures. Alex Richter-Boix from Barcelona’s Pompeu Fabra University said: “Mosquito observations in November and December in previous

A SECOND batch of Ukrainian citizens have arrived in Spain for military training. Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles welcomed them yesterday (January 12) at the Torrejon Air Base near Madrid. She was accompanied by Teodoro López Calderón, Chief of the Defence Staff and Ukrainian Ambassador to Spain Serhii Pohoreltsev. Of the 225 Ukrainians who arrived

FINESTRAT council wants to stop the erosion of sand from Cala de Finestrat beach on the northern Costa Blanca. It’s an urban cove of around 200 metres and is a busy area for beach goers in the summer. The authority has urged the Provincial Coastal Service to take action but has so far not received

LABS have detected the Kraken variant of COVID-19 from samples taken in Gibraltar last week, the Rock’s health authority announced. But the variant that is racing through the USA was not responsible for December’s surge of cases, and a new wave could be about to hit, Public Health Gibraltar said in a statement. It said

As an expat in Spain, you might not be familiar with the local Christmas traditions. Spain has many traditions that vary from region to region, so wherever you are, there is lots to get you in the festive spirit. Spanish towns, cities, and villages are filled with Christmas cheer all through December, right up until