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Independent Party to Sue OSE, Demands Halt to Casupá Dam Construction
🇺🇾 Uruguay /Energy & Infrastructure

Independent Party to Sue OSE, Demands Halt to Casupá Dam Construction

From El País · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources In the courts
  • Uruguay's Independent Party (PI) is filing a lawsuit against the state water utility OSE over the Casupá dam construction project.
  • The PI argues that essential legal and environmental stages have not been completed, yet OSE is proceeding with the project and tendering.
  • The party seeks a judicial injunction to halt project activities until a ruling is made, citing potential environmental impacts and future state liabilities.

Uruguay's Independent Party (PI) has announced its intention to file a lawsuit against the state water utility OSE, challenging the ongoing construction of the Casupá dam. The party contends that the project is advancing despite the non-completion of critical legal and environmental procedures, raising concerns about adherence to constitutional and environmental laws.

In a statement, the PI, led by former Minister of Labor Pablo Mieres, is requesting judicial intervention to ensure compliance with the Constitution, environmental legislation, and the rule of law. The party specifically questions OSE's initiation of the bidding process for the dam's construction before receiving prior environmental authorization from the Ministry of Environment, which the PI deems an indispensable requirement for assessing the project's viability.

The objective is to prevent the Casupá Project from continuing to consolidate before there is a judicial pronouncement on the merits of the matter.

— Independent Party (PI) statementThe PI explained the goal of seeking a precautionary measure to suspend project activities.

The lawsuit also highlights that the project has progressed through international financing, executive project development, expropriations, and tendering processes. The PI argues that these commitments have been made administratively, contractually, and economically before the legally mandated stages have been fulfilled. This, the party warns, could expose the state to future patrimonial liabilities if modifications become necessary following judicial decisions.

A key demand in the lawsuit is for a precautionary measure to suspend all project-related activities while the judiciary reviews the case. The PI classifies the Casupá project as Category C, the highest environmental impact category under Uruguayan regulations, reserved for undertakings with significant potential impacts. "Precisely for this reason, the lawsuit maintains that full compliance with the environmental assessment procedure constitutes an essential guarantee for environmental protection, administrative transparency, and the public interest," the party stated. Mieres further elaborated that the lawsuit would proceed in civil court, asserting that OSE is not adhering to legal requirements.

Precisely for this reason, the lawsuit maintains that full compliance with the environmental assessment procedure constitutes an essential guarantee for environmental protection, administrative transparency, and the public interest.

— Independent Party (PI) statementThe PI justified its lawsuit by emphasizing the importance of environmental assessment procedures for projects with high impact.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El País in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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