It transpired in a recent meeting that Faro council has chosen the ‘Cremal - Perfect Partner’ partnership to build the crematorium and run it for 30 years after a public tender was launched earlier this year on 30 May.
Newspaper Correio da Manhã reported on Tuesday this week that the decision was approved in the council meeting; three other companies had also competed for the management of the service.
Faro council will, according to CM, through the concession contract, receive a monthly rent of €1,250 plus five percent of each cremation, which it claimed will be priced at €290.
Faro Mayor Rogério Bacalhau is said to have proposed sealing the deal and it was met with unanimous agreement from all councillors.
As the newspaper recalled plans for a crematorium in Faro have been on the table since 2012 following an international public tender for the project, which fell through and saw Faro council this year receive compensation of €309,000 from the first company, Funefaro, which was originally selected to bring the plans to fruition.
In 2011 plans were unveiled for another three crematoriums to be built in the Algarve, but those have since fallen by the wayside.
Of the circa 5,000 funerals per year carried out in the Algarve, cremations are often carried out at the nearest crematorium which is located at least an hour’s drive away, in Ferreira do Alentejo.
In related news, the same newspaper also revealed plans for an animal cemetery to be built in Lagos, which the report claimed is “a pioneering project in the county.”
The cemetery is to be built near Lagos kennel on land belonging to the council and has a budget of around €50,000.
A proposal for an animal cemetery was voted on last year as part of the annual budget and is now moving into a phase of construction.
Lagos Mayor Maria Joaquina Matos said the project is “much cherished” by the local population and by the council, and voiced hopes it will “soon be open.”
The local kennel has also recently been subject to renovation works to improve conditions for the animals therein. It has a capacity for 42 dogs and seven cats.