The Badalona City Council takes an average of almost 170 days to pay its suppliers, according to figures from the State government's ARES Portal, making it the slowest payer in Catalonia and the second slowest in Spain after Parla in Madrid, which averages 192 days.
This delay has triggered national scrutiny. In May 2026, the Ministry of Finance included Badalona in its Mechanism for Supplier Payments 2026, a mandatory state financing procedure for municipalities with prolonged payment delays. The inclusion followed an April 2026 municipal audit report that found the council paid suppliers an average of 126 days late, four times the legal limit of 30 days set by national law.
The audit also revealed a treasury surplus of €344 million, prompting opposition parties to criticise what they describe as mismanagement. "It is inadmissible that Badalona accumulates hundreds of millions without spending while essential services deteriorate," said a joint statement from PSC, ERC, Comuns and Guanyem.
Political Fallout Over Payment Delays
Fernando Carrera, president of the socialist municipal group, accused Mayor Xavier Garcia Albiol of squandering an opportunity to access up to €168 million in state investment for housing. Under Royal Decree-Law 13/2026, passed on 2 June 2026, municipalities can use budget surpluses from 2025 to 2029 for sustainable housing investments over four years. But Badalona is excluded due to its failure to meet legal payment timelines.
It is inadmissible that the city cannot benefit from this law because the municipal government fails to meet its most basic obligation: paying suppliers on time.
Carrera added: "Albiol arrived promising to fix the council's machinery, but the data shows he has made it worse."
Council Defends Progress Amid Backlog
Eva Guillén, fifth deputy mayor and councillor for Finance, acknowledged the delays are a legacy issue dating back to 2018, when key municipal contracts, including cleaning, expired and invoices could not be processed. She denied claims of a de facto state intervention, stating the surplus stems from unpaid bills for services rendered without active contracts.
"Many invoices were not being processed," Guillén said, adding that the council has since approved payments of over €44 million in overdue invoices through two plenary sessions. A further €16 million package was proposed for approval in a subsequent plenary.
"This situation is being progressively regularised," Guillén stated, noting that while pending payments still average 189 days, settled invoices now take an average of 35 days, closer to legal compliance.
Reported by liniaxarxa.cat, elperiodico.com, El Periódico, metropoliabierta.elespanol.com, upday.com, elplural.com, taketonews.com, Línia Xarxa.
