EU Approves Portugal's Renewable Energy Manufacturing Funding Plan with 350 Million Euros

According to foreign media reports, the European Commission recently approved a 350 million euro funding plan to support Portugal's production of renewable energy equipment and components.

The funds will be disbursed in the form of direct grants by the end of 2025 and will be financed by the European Commission's Recovery and Resilience Fund.

Portuguese manufacturers of photovoltaic modules, wind turbines, heat pumps, electrolyzers and carbon capture use and storage equipment, as well as companies involved in the mining of key raw materials required for production, will be eligible for this funding.

The funds were approved under the EU State Aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, which supports measures in sectors deemed key to accelerate the green transition and reduce fuel dependence.

In a recent statement, the European Commission said that the funds are necessary and appropriate to accelerate Portugal's green transition and promote the development of certain economic activities.

Margrethe Vestager, the European Commission's executive vice president for competition policy, said, "The funds will provide critical support for Portugal to produce strategic equipment needed for the transition to a net zero emission economy... The program will support these investments without unduly interfering with market competition."

According to data released by the International Renewable Energy Agency, by the end of 2022, Portugal had installed 2,536MW of photovoltaic systems.

The Portuguese government has also set an energy transition target that 85% of the country's electricity will come from renewable energy by the end of 2030. In February 2024, Portugal's second photovoltaic-wind hybrid power generation project was put into operation.