The mayors of the affected municipalities are extremely angry because the measure was announced at the last minute by the operators. The company justifies its decision by saying that the maintenance of the swimming pools has become extremely expensive due to increased utility costs, forcing them to temporarily close the pools. Workers will receive partial unemployment benefits.

The energy crisis and skyrocketing utility bills are causing more and more problems, which are also palpable in everyday life and public services. This is the case for more than 30 public swimming pools in France, which the operator, Vert Marine, has been forced to close, an article published in Le Figaro reveals.

The company operates dozens of swimming pools for local communities across France, but has now been forced to close thirty-two public pools due to increased costs. In a press release sent to the AFP news agency, Vert Marine said that it had had to temporarily close a third of its sites and that workers would receive partial unemployment benefits for the period in question. The drastic step comes after Vert Marine’s energy bill has increased from 15 million euros to 100 million euros, which equals the company’s total annual turnover, and although the company has been in talks with local communities since June, no solution has yet been found. The company, which employs 2,000 people, said it does not want to triple prices, but does not want to suspend swimming lessons for schoolchildren in municipalities either, and has appealed to local and government authorities to make costs more affordable and maintain public service obligations.

The public pools operator’s statement also reveals that 60 per cent of the public swimming pools in France are more than 30 years old, with extremely high water consumption due to outdated technology, and the running costs for ventilators and other equipment are also rather high.

Vert Marine operates public swimming pools in several French towns. The mayor of one small town, Granville in Normandy, told Le Figaro that the operator quite simply presented the city administration with a fait accompli, so he convened a crisis meeting on the closure of the L’Hippocampe centre. Nathalie Nieson, the mayor of another affected town, Bourg-de-Peage in the Drome department, took to Twitter to express outrage at the operator’s move. In her post, the mayor condemned the company’s unilateral decision to close the Diabolo aquatic centre immediately and indefinitely due to soaring energy prices, without giving advance notice to local residents or councillors.

😡Fermeture immédiate et pour une durée indéterminée du complexe aquatique DIABOLO á cause de l’envolée des coûts de l’énergie. Vert Marine a pris cette décision unilatéralement.
Je dénonce cette méthode qui met les habitants d’un territoire et les élus devant le fait accompli! pic.twitter.com/jh6sDWhKWV

— Nathalie NIESON (@nnieson) September 5, 2022

Le Figaro pointed out that Vert Marine notified the town hall about the closure of the Diabolo swimming pool in an email at the last minute without leaving room for consultation. The town’s mayor argues that significant cuts to costs could have been achieved by reducing the water temperature or limiting the opening hours.

Harold Huwart, vice-chair of the association of small towns in France and the mayor of Nogent-le-Rotrou in the Eure-et-Loire department, told Le Figaro that the operator informed them on Saturday morning that the swimming pool would not open at noon on Saturday. The politician pointed out that Vert Marine’s decision constituted a unilateral breach of public service contract, which is why town leaders were considering legal action and suspending payments to the operating company.

Ma réaction dans Le Figaro sur la fermeture de 32 piscines publiques par le groupe Vert Marine. Une décision précipitée, une rupture unilatérale de contrat de service public, qui nous oblige á saisir nos avocats en urgence et á suspendre nos paiements. ⤵️https://t.co/GGunFKgFBD

— Harold Huwart (@HHuwart) September 5, 2022