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Energy

Aerial view of a utility-scale photovoltaic plant at Bensafrim, near Lagos in the Algarve, with long rows of blue solar panels covering rolling scrubland and dirt access tracks between them

Insolvency Catches Up With the British Owner of Solara4, Portugal's Largest Solar Plant at Alcoutim

Welink Energy Portugal 2 UK Limited, which holds the roughly 220 MW plant in the eastern Algarve, has entered insolvency after output came in below forecast and Iberian wholesale prices fell. Investec and Kommunalkredit are owed about €64 million; the Chinese builder claims €143 million.

The Portugal Brief 24 Aug 2026

Wind turbines lined along bare hilltops in northern Portugal under a clear sky

Portugal's Green Map for Solar and Wind Shrinks From 7% of the Mainland to 4%, With Each Council Held to 1% of Its Own Land

The Council of Ministers approved the PSZAER on Thursday, pre-clearing more than 800 areas for solar and wind across 147 of the mainland's 278 municipalities. Environmental, agricultural, water and heritage limits cut the mapped share almost in half.

The Portugal Brief 21 Aug 2026

Large liquefied natural gas storage tanks at the Sines terminal on Portugal's south-west coast

Staff at the Sines LNG Terminal Set a Three-Day Stoppage Over Shifts, in a Grievance Dating Back to 2012

Workers at REN Atlantico's Sines terminal, Portugal's only LNG import point, strike from 23 to 25 August. Their unions say most staff face nearly 47 years on rotating shifts before they can retire, and want an earlier exit.

The Portugal Brief 20 Aug 2026

A high-voltage electricity pylon and power line crossing eucalyptus forest in Rio Maior, Portugal

The Contribuição para o Audiovisual (CAV) in Portugal in 2026 — A Practical Guide to the €2.85 RTP Levy on Your Electricity Bill, the 6% VAT, the Reduced and Zero Rates, and Who Is Exempt

That mysterious line on your Portuguese electricity bill funds public broadcaster RTP. The Contribuição Audiovisual costs €3.02 a month with VAT, you pay it even with no television, and it is charged per electricity contract. The 2026 amounts, the reduced €1 rate, the under-400 kWh exemption, and ho

The Portugal Brief 18 Aug 2026

Portugal's 2021 Floating-Solar Auction Has All but Collapsed, and EDP's Exit From the Alqueva Leaves Only One Plant Standing

Portugal's 2021 Floating-Solar Auction Has All but Collapsed, and EDP's Exit From the Alqueva Leaves Only One Plant Standing

Four years after Portugal auctioned its reservoirs for floating solar, five of six plants have failed and EDP has abandoned the biggest — the Grande Lago on the Alqueva. Wildlife rules and thin economics explain a stalled bet.

The Portugal Brief 15 Aug 2026

The white domed reactor and grey buildings of the Almaraz Nuclear Power Plant beside a reservoir in Caceres, Spain, seen from a nearby road with hills behind

Spain Extends the Almaraz Nuclear Plant to 2030, and Portuguese Campaigners Press Lisbon to Object

Spain will keep the ageing Almaraz nuclear plant, on the Tagus barely 100 km from the Portuguese border, running until June 2030. The environmental group Zero wants Lisbon to object, and the border districts of the Beira Baixa are already demanding answers.

The Portugal Brief 14 Aug 2026

Pump Prices in Portugal Don't Rise Faster Than They Fall, the Energy Regulator Concludes — and It Rejects Capping Margins

Portugal's energy regulator, ERSE, studied 186 weeks of prices and found no persistent evidence that fuel rises faster than it falls, and no grounds to cap retailers' margins. The real reason the pump hurts, it says, is tax, not profiteering.

The Portugal Brief 13 Aug 2026

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