Fortina has issued a statement in response to the National Audit Office’s (NAO) report published earlier today, which scrutinises the Government’s removal of development restrictions at the Fortina Hotel site in Sliema.
The NAO report, spanning over 200 pages and taking more than four years to compile, examines the details of the controversial cut-price land deal.
Fortina said it would take the necessary time to thoroughly review the document before making substantive public comments.
“Fortina denies any insinuations made in its regard,” the company stated, adding that it would be premature to make detailed public statements until the report’s contents have been properly evaluated.
The firm emphasised its commitment to transparency and promised to provide appropriate responses following its comprehensive review.
The story
The Auditor General’s report found major discrepancies in how the Fortina Hotel land in Sliema was valued.
In 2019, the Lands Authority’s own internal valuation put the land at €8.1 million.
At the time of the deal, the Lands Authority had also hired an independent firm to provide a valuation. This firm valued the land at €18.3 million, later revised to €23.9 million if payment was deferred until the development was completed.
The report found that this valuation was deliberately hidden by the late former judge Lino Farrugia Sacco, who at the time chaired the Lands Authority’s Board of Governors.
An independent valuation commissioned later by the NAO estimated the land’s true worth at €21 million, meaning the property was effectively sold for €12.9 million less than its market value.
Additionally, although the land was originally intended for tourism purposes, it was sold to Fortina to develop apartments and commercial activities, all for the low price of €8.1 million.
An MP who testified to the NAO suggested that Fortina likely knew about the €18.3 million valuation, which would explain Fortina’s quick acceptance of the much lower €8.1 million figure.
Government reactions
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Ian Borg, who was the Lands Minister at the time of the deal, reiterated his intention to recover any funds deemed due to the Government.
He said today that he would urgently ask the Parliamentary Audit Committee to discuss the NAO findings, stating that he was unaware of the original hidden valuation.
Dr Borg vowed to request the Auditor General to provide all information previously unavailable to Parliament and present the other valuation report commissioned to verify the land’s value.
