Lipari’s pumice floats towards a new future, former Pumex sold

Last Updated: May 16, 2024

La pomice di Lipari galleggia verso un nuovo futuro, venduta l'ex Pumex

The pumice of Lipari is heading towards a new future. Porticello sold. Acquacalda too. The former Pumex liquidated and purchased by the company of Fausto Mandarano, an engineer from Lipari who splits his time between Switzerland and America and the former Italpomice auctioned off. Two different buyers will ferry Lipari towards new shores, new perspectives, and new investments. Politicians have relieved themselves of a burden, as well as the liquidator, and maybe the price paid will be fair. All happy and content buyers and sellers, hopeful and certainly no one will regret their decisions.

The former Pumex was purchased by the company MB Project. Fausto Mandarano took over the entire bankruptcy of the liquidated Spa, including real estate (buildings and land), stakes in numerous controlled companies, credits and debts. Mandarano had previously acquired the former camping site of Unci, located in Canneto, which is set to be restored and ready for the summer season of 2025, as well as the construction of the first padel court in Canneto, which will be operational in June.

As for the pumice quarries, with the closure of Pumex to avoid further compromising the pumice mountain, given that the Aeolian Islands had become a UNESCO World Heritage Site (the 100 employees who had lost their jobs after years of suffering were absorbed by the company Resais and are now under the jurisdiction of the Municipality and the Local Health Authority), the former President of the Region, Nello Musumeci, had come forward. His government had given the green light to the purchase proposal of the former pumice quarry and the real estate complex. After placing a constraint on it and starting a difficult negotiation with the liquidator commissioner, he had tried to make the recovery and requalification of the mining site concrete and return the area to the use of the island community and tourists. He had also found the necessary financial coverage, estimated at 4.5 million euros by the regional departments of energy, technical, and cultural heritage, to start the development plan for the environmental recovery of the areas and the enhancement of the former production complex, including the creation of a pumice museum and geomineral park. The aim was to protect and enhance the ancient historical heritage of pumice and obsidian extraction on the island, which is of significant value, rather than dispersing it. But then, as we have seen, everything fell apart. After Kaolin, the most extensive private property on the island of Lipari purchased at a very low price of only 80 thousand euros, now the second and third private properties of Lipari change hands.

The assets of the former Pumex sold by the liquidator Massimo Galletti (the amount has not been disclosed) and Italpomice with a starting auction base of 2,234,198 euros. Under the scrutiny or absence of the entire Aeolian politics. Financing and jobs will emerge. Meanwhile, Vulcano is also awaiting the outcome of its auction for the world’s first privately owned crater. It is half a mountain for over 2 and a half million square meters. All of this is part of Aeolian tourism. With free advertising.