Benidorm awards the restoration of the 'Andrea' columns on Paseo de Levante for 590,000 euros

The Local Government Board (LGB) of Benidorm City Council approved this Monday the award of the contract for the renovation of the ornamental lighting on the Levante Promenade, known as the "Andrea" columns, for a total of €590,210.42, VAT included. This was announced this Monday by the city's mayor, Toni Pérez, who emphasised that "we continue to make progress on the commitment we made to the public to remodel, modernise, and improve the image of one of the most emblematic and busiest areas of our city, the Levante Promenade." He also noted that "this project complements the festoon lights renovation project, which is also already in its second phase and in which we have invested just over €2.8 million."

The company awarded the contract was Sociedad Ibérica de Construcciones Eléctricas SA (SICE), whose bid received a score of 71.50 points after municipal technicians evaluated the technical and financial proposals, and the proposed complementary works, compared to the 21.09 received by the other company that submitted the tender.

The renovation of the "Andrea" lights falls within the 'Verde Benidorm' Destination Tourism Sustainability Plan (PSTD) and will involve not only the renovation of these highly characteristic and recognisable elements of the Levante waterfront, but also an improvement in energy efficiency and, therefore, a reduction in emissions, consumption, and expenditure," the mayor stated.

Specifically, the project envisages restoring the structures that support the inner cylinder that forms the light fixture, which dates back to the 1990s; replace this same cylinder and the interior spotlights that illuminate it, as well as equip them with a new electrical and control system for intelligent supply and management. Thanks to LED technology, the installed power will be reduced by 40%, thus meeting energy efficiency requirements.

Benidorm currently has 22 of these luminaires, 18 of which are distributed along the promenade, and four are located at the intersection of Avenida Europa and the beachfront. The renovation project approved last May envisages removing the latter to create a space free of elements, while the remaining 18 will be refurbished as described above, also allowing for the installation of technology that will project lights of different colours, as is already the case with the bulbs on the promenade's overhead lines.

The Councillor for Urban Scene, Francis Muñoz, emphasised that "after more than three decades of service facing the sea, the structure of these 'Andrea' columns shows significant rust, hence the need to restore them so that they once again look their best and blend in with the surrounding environment, which is one of the busiest areas in Benidorm." For this comprehensive restoration process, all the columns will be dismantled and their components refinished. They will receive specific treatment to minimise the impact of the marine environment and "guarantee a life expectancy of more than 15 years in areas subject to high humidity and/or harsh conditions."

The conduit wiring will also be renewed, and a new fibre optic circuit and control nodes will be installed for smart management, allowing the 'Andreas' to also change the colour of their lighting.

The Urban Scene Councillor reported that the project awarded to SICE "has an eight-month execution period, so taking into account the entire bidding and contracting process, the forecast is that these elements will be completely renovated for the 2026 summer season." Finally, he added that this project "completes the modernization and updating of the lighting elements of the first line of Levante, which we began with the renovation of the festoon lights of the promenade from Torrejó to Avenida de Europa and which we are now continuing with the second phase, from Europa to Médico Miguel Martorell, with an investment that already exceeds 2.8 million, in contrast, once again, to the lack of investment in our city by the Spanish Government."

 'Verde Benidorm'

The Sustainable Tourism Destination Plan 'Green Benidorm 2024-2026' has 5,500,000 euros in funding from the European Union's Next Generation funds, which are used to implement 16 initiatives to achieve a more sustainable and digital Benidorm, one that advances in energy efficiency and combats climate change, and continues to invest in protecting the region. Thus, with this Sustainable Tourism Destination Plan, Benidorm City Council is certifying and recognising the destination's sustainability as part of the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan, financed with European Union funds - Next Generation EU, and included in the Territorial Sustainability Plan of the Valencian Community and coordinated by Turisme Comunitat Valenciana.