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Algarve

News and developments from Portugal's southern Algarve region.
Interior of a brightly-lit supermarket aisle with stocked grocery shelves — Mercadona confirms €150M and twelve new Portuguese stores for 2026.

Mercadona Commits €150 Million and Twelve New Portuguese Stores for 2026 — Algarve and Beja Districts Debut at Portimão, Faro and the Beja Retail Park as the Spanish Chain Targets 81 Outlets by Year-End

Mercadona has detailed a €150 million Portuguese investment that opens twelve new stores in 2026, drops the brand into the Algarve and Beja districts for the first time and takes the chain's national footprint to 81 outlets covering 16 of 18 mainland districts.
The Portugal Brief
APA Eases Groundwater-Drilling Ban Across Most Algarve Water Bodies, the Moura-Ficalho Aquifer and the Left Bank of the Tejo-Sado — Faro Plain and Coastal Salt-Intrusion Zones Stay Frozen

APA Eases Groundwater-Drilling Ban Across Most Algarve Water Bodies, the Moura-Ficalho Aquifer and the Left Bank of the Tejo-Sado — Faro Plain and Coastal Salt-Intrusion Zones Stay Frozen

The Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente has partially lifted its moratorium on new groundwater drillings (furos de água) across most of the Algarve, the Moura-Ficalho aquifer and the left bank of the Tejo-Sado basin. The Faro Plain subsystem and coastal salt-intrusion prevention zones stay frozen.
The Portugal Brief
Registering an Alojamento Local in Portugal in 2026 — A Guide to the Balcão Único Comunicação Prévia, the Four Modalidades, the 60-or-90-Day Câmara Window, the Decreto-Lei 76/2024 Mais Habitação Rollback and the EU Regulation 2024/1028 May Rollout

Registering an Alojamento Local in Portugal in 2026 — A Guide to the Balcão Único Comunicação Prévia, the Four Modalidades, the 60-or-90-Day Câmara Window, the Decreto-Lei 76/2024 Mais Habitação Rollback and the EU Regulation 2024/1028 May Rollout

Registering an Alojamento Local in Portugal in 2026 — the RNAL comunicação prévia, the Balcão Único Eletrónico, the four modalidades, the 60-or-90-day câmara window, the Decreto-Lei 76/2024 reset of Mais Habitação, and the EU Regulation 2024/1028 platform data-sharing layer landing in May.
The Portugal Brief
Portugal's High-Speed-Vessel Crackdown Takes Effect on Sunday 17 May After 90-Day Vacatio Legis — 1-to-4-Year Prison for Flagless EAVs, €100,000 Corporate Fines and the 'Narcopirataria' Regime Inherits the October Guadiana GNR Fatality

Portugal's High-Speed-Vessel Crackdown Takes Effect on Sunday 17 May After 90-Day Vacatio Legis — 1-to-4-Year Prison for Flagless EAVs, €100,000 Corporate Fines and the 'Narcopirataria' Regime Inherits the October Guadiana GNR Fatality

Portugal's new high-speed-vessel regime enters force on Sunday 17 May after a 90-day vacatio legis. Flagless EAVs draw 1-4 years in prison; €25k individual / €100k corporate fines; DGRM licensing and AT customs become non-optional. PJ has seized 200+ narcolanchas in six years.
The Portugal Brief