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On July 28, 2026, the Nice Administrative Court issued three long-awaited rulings regarding the Camille Rayon Port concession. While the overall management of the port was not called into question, the administrative court ruled that the granting of a temporary occupancy permit for the shipyard to MB92 did not comply with the rules governing public notice and competitive bidding. The termination of this part of the contract will take effect in nine months, giving the municipality time to initiate a new procedure.
A separate occupancy permit from the port concession
The dispute stems from the concession agreement signed on July 8, 2024, between the municipality of Vallauris Golfe Juan and D Marinas Hellas. This agreement entrusted the operator with the redevelopment and operation of the Camille Rayon Marina.
Under the same contract, MB92 was designated to operate the shipyard pursuant to a permit for temporary use of public property.
The Prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes argued that this authorization should be reclassified as a public service subconcession. The court did not agree with this analysis. The judges found that MB92 was not entrusted with a public service mission but was engaged in the economic activity of ship repair, without meeting a specific need of the municipality and without being subject to its control.
This distinction is important for port operators. It confirms that an industrial or commercial activity carried out on public land is not automatically considered a public service.
Penalties for Failure to Conduct a Competitive Bidding Process
The court invalidated the contract on a different basis. The judges held that the municipality could not directly grant MB92 an exclusive right to operate on public property without conducting a specific public notice and selection process.
According to the ruling, the bidding process for the port concession did not ensure the transparency necessary to select a third-party company to operate the shipyard. Moreover, MB92 was not a bidder in that process.
The court thus finds that the obligations arising under the law governing the use of public property have not been met. It therefore orders the termination of the concession solely to the extent that it designates MB92 as the holder of this authorization.
A Deferred Termination to Preserve Business Operations
The court did not order immediate termination. The effects of the decision have been deferred for nine months in order to avoid an abrupt interruption of the shipyard?s operations and to give the local community time to resolve the situation.
For companies operating on the site, subcontractors, and yacht owners hosted at the shipyard, this transitional period is intended to ensure business continuity while allowing for the implementation of a new award procedure.
This approach is frequently adopted by administrative courts when an immediate annulment could disrupt a government service or an important economic activity.
Rodriguez Yachts' Appeal Dismissed
The third aspect of the litigation concerned Rodriguez Yachts, a bidder that was rejected during the bidding process. In particular, the company challenged the impartiality of the selection process.
The administrative court dismissed this motion, ruling that the principle of impartiality had not been violated.
This decision means that the port concession process itself is not being called into question. Only the temporary occupancy permit granted to MB92 is affected by the termination.
A decision closely watched by marinas
Beyond the specific case of the Camille Rayon Port, this decision is of interest to all local governments and concessionaires that carry out economic activities on public land.
Marinas are hosting an increasing number of companies specializing in refit, maintenance, or yacht services. The administrative court?s ruling serves as a reminder that the allocation of these berths cannot be implicitly included in a port concession when they benefit a specific economic operator.
Local authorities must therefore ensure that they distinguish between procedures related to port management and those concerning the exclusive use of public property when such activities have independent economic significance.
The ruling now gives the parties nine months to act on this decision and, if necessary, initiate a new procedure in accordance with the requirements for public notice and competitive bidding.
