Portugal allocates funding for 500 MW of energy storage

Portugal is seeking to promote flexibility and balance its power system with energy storage as it continues to break records for solar energy production. To this end, the country’s Ministry of Energy announced on Wednesday that it has allocated €99.75 million in a bid to support 500 MW of energy storage projects.

Eligible projects can receive up to EUR 30 million and can be developed both at the transmission and distribution levels by the end of 2025. The funding is allocated through the Environmental Fund and included in the country’s Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP).

The tender is launched “in response to the growing need to optimize and manage the electricity grid in a flexible manner, especially in light of the current geopolitical situation and its impacts on the energy market,” the Ministry said in a statement.

Applications can be submitted via the Environmental Fund portal until September 2.

The Minister of Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, described the scheme “a unique opportunity for companies and institutions that wish to contribute to a more sustainable and independent energy future in Portugal, and thus be part of the solution to current energy challenges”.

According to him, energy storage plays a crucial role in the modernisation of the country’s electrical infrastructure, “enabling more effective management of resources and a more agile response to fluctuations in supply and demand, thus benefiting the economy and the environment.”

“With the increasing integration of renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, it is essential to have solutions that guarantee the flexibility and stability of the electricity grid”, said Maria da Graça Carvalho.

Portugal’s renewable power capacity has been growing rapidly over the last years, pushing spot power prices to a decade low earlier this year. According to network operator REN, renewable energy generation covered 95% of the nation’s electricity demand in April. That follows a 91% share in March, 88% in February, and 81% in January.

This has marked a significant change in the country’s electricity mix, with the share of renewables growing from 27% in 2005 and 54% in 2017. The nation’s last coal-fired power plant was shut in 2021.

The country’s updated energy strategy aims for 80% of electricity in the country to be renewable by 2026, and 85% by 2030. The revised plan sets a target of 20.4 GW of operational PV systems in 2030, with 14.9 GW for utility-scale plants and 5.5 GW for distributed generation.

Last week, Portugal announced its first auction for green biomethan and hydrogen.