Portugal plans to raise share of renewables in electricity consumption to 93% by 2030

Lisbon: Portugal plans to raise the contribution of renewables in electricity consumption to 93% by 2030, as part of its decarbonisation push, according to an updated draft of its energy and climate plan.

However, the draft proposal plans to lower the 2030 target for the installed capacity of electrolyzers to make green hydrogen by 45%. Portugal is only just now taking the first steps to install electrolyzers and has almost no production of green hydrogen.

Portugal’s new centre-right government will release the draft later on Monday for in public consultation until 5 September, when it will be sent to parliament.

European nations are increasingly betting on renewable energies, especially after gas prices hit record highs in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Renewable utilities supplied 61% of Portugal’s electricity consumption in 2023, already one of the highest ratios in Europe. A year ago, the former socialist government set the target for 2030 at 85%.

Environment and Energy Minister Maria da Graca Carvalho said the updated plan aims to combat climate change and guarantee energy security and also “attract investment and generate competitiveness”.

She said two weeks ago her government wanted to increase the weight of renewables to 51% of the country’s final energy needs by 2030 from a current target of 47%.

The revised draft maintains Portugal’s commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% from 2005 levels by 2030, a target set by the former socialist government a year ago, and the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045.

The overall installed renewable energy capacity will rise to 42.9 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 or twice as much as the capacity in operation in 2023, with 12.4 GW of wind power, including 2 GW of offshore wind, by 2030. The country had 5.9 GW of onshore wind capacity in 2023 and a small, 25-megawatt floating wind project off its Atlantic coast.

The draft proposal seeks to raise the installed solar capacity to 20.8 GW by 2030, up from 4 GW last year.

However, it lowered the target for electrolyzers to make green hydrogen to a capacity of 3 GW by 2030, down from the 5.5 GW set in June 2023. These would absorb 8.6 GW of renewable electricity.

Still, the draft added Portugal has “very favorable conditions for installation of a green hydrogen industry” as its main advantage is renewable electricity production low cost.