General Daily Briefing — Tuesday, 11 August 2026
The StartUP Visa in Portugal in 2026 — A Practical Guide
Portugal's StartUP Visa lets non-EU founders base an innovative company here through an IAPMEI-certified incubator. Our 2026 guide covers eligibility, the €325,000 growth threshold, the 12x IAS means test, the incubator process, and how the residence visa and AIMA permit work.
The Certificado Energético in Portugal in 2026 — A Practical Guide
The energy performance certificate is legally required before you can advertise a home for sale or rent in Portugal. Our 2026 guide covers the A+ to F scale, the ADENE registration fees, the perito qualificado, the process, the exemptions, and the fines for skipping it.
Good morning. Here is your Tuesday briefing for 11 August 2026 — six stories shaping Portugal today, from wild boars taking over the beaches of the Arrábida and a magnitude 7.4 earthquake that shut hundreds of Jerónimo Martins stores in Colombia, to a Lisbon tech company's return to Google Play, a court striking down millions in supermarket price-fixing fines, a defence minister suing his political rivals, and Primark's steady march across the Portuguese high street.
- Wild boars are roaming the beaches of the Arrábida and the streets of Setúbal, damaging gardens and grabbing food from beachgoers, as residents warn the problem is out of control.
- Jerónimo Martins closed around 200 of its Ara supermarkets in Colombia after a deadly magnitude 7.4 earthquake, a material hit in one of the group's biggest growth markets.
- Lisbon's Aptoide returned to Google Play in the US more than a decade after Google pushed it out, a win powered by the EU's Digital Markets Act.
- A competition court annulled €5.5 million in price-fixing fines from the long-running Sogrape supermarket case, exposing how fragile such penalties are on appeal.
- Defence Minister Nuno Melo is suing Chega's André Ventura and Pedro Frazão over claims about Portugal's €3.9 billion purchase of three Italian frigates.
- Primark will open two more Portuguese stores next month as part of a €45 million expansion, including its first street-front shop, in central Porto.
Wild Boars Are Roaming Arrábida's Beaches and Setúbal's Streets, and Residents Say the Problem Is Out of Control
Wild boars (javalis) have been wandering onto the beaches of the Parque Natural da Arrábida and into the streets of Setúbal, rooting through gardens, upending bins and, in several reported cases, trying to snatch bags and food from beachgoers. Residents around Portinho da Arrábida describe a species that has slipped "out of control," and part of the Praia da Figueirinha was placed under an access restriction during the week. The Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas (ICNF) counters that the seasonal rise in sightings is largely expected, and manages the population through periodic culls.
Jerónimo Martins Shutters About 200 Ara Stores in Colombia After a Deadly Magnitude 7.4 Earthquake
Jerónimo Martins, the Lisbon-listed group behind Pingo Doce and Recheio, said around 200 of its Ara supermarkets in Colombia were closed after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake killed well over a hundred people on Monday. Colombia is no side project: the Ara chain has grown past 1,500 stores and booked roughly €3.2 billion in sales in 2025, a meaningful slice of a group with €35.9 billion in total sales and €646 million in net profit last year. The company framed the closures as a precautionary response, not a retreat, and investors will watch how fast the stores reopen.
Portugal's Aptoide Returns to Google Play in the US, a Decade After Google Pushed It Out
More than a decade after Google forced it out, the Portuguese app store Aptoide is back on Google Play — its games store returned to the US marketplace on Monday, in what the Lisbon company calls the first major rival Android store distributed through Google Play itself. Founded in 2009 by Paulo Trezentos, Aptoide spent years arguing that Google's Play Protect throttled its growth. The reversal owes much to the EU's Digital Markets Act, which has forced Google and Apple to loosen their grip on how apps are installed and paid for.
A Competition Court Throws Out €5.5 Million in Price-Fixing Fines From the Long-Running Sogrape Supermarket Case
A Portuguese court has struck down €5.5 million in fines imposed on the food-distribution sector for coordinating prices, in a fresh blow to one of the country's landmark competition cases. The 2021 decision by the Autoridade da Concorrência fined five supermarket chains — Auchan, E.Leclerc, Intermarché, Modelo Continente and Pingo Doce — plus supplier Sogrape a total of about €17.2 million over an alleged "hub-and-spoke" scheme. The regulator, which has warned that many of its biggest fines risk unravelling on appeal, can still challenge the ruling.
Defence Minister Nuno Melo Takes Chega's Ventura and Frazão to Court Over Frigate-Deal Claims
Defence Minister Nuno Melo is suing Chega leader André Ventura, MP Pedro Frazão and the online newspaper 24Horas over claims about Portugal's planned €3.9 billion purchase of three frigates from Italy's Fincantieri. A 24Horas report alleged that sidelining a Portuguese intermediary, NTG, cost the firm some €90 million in commissions. The Ministry of Defence says the two politicians "lied premeditatedly," while Ventura called the lawsuit proof of "opacity and arrogance" and Frazão said he was not afraid of the proceedings.
Primark Presses Ahead With Its Portugal Expansion, Opening Two More Stores Next Month
Primark is deepening its bet on Portugal, with two new stores due to open next month as part of a roughly €45 million investment programme expected to create around 300 jobs. The plan spans new outlets in Castelo Branco, Porto, Setúbal and Vila Nova de Gaia, plus an expansion at Fórum Coimbra — and, most notably, the brand's first street-front flagship in Portugal, planned for the historic Palladium building on Porto's Rua de Santa Catarina. It is a striking wager on physical retail at a time when much of the sector frets about e-commerce.
