Prices of energy storage products in Portugal

The Portuguese energy sector is liberalized, meaning that you are typically free to choose the electricity (luz) provider of your choice when setting up your new home. However, this choice is a fairly recent development in Portugal. As such, many households in the country are still supplied by EDP, the former state operator.

The first step in the construction of a new storage facility is to secure the proper use or rights over the land where the installation is to be developed. Under Portuguese law, various options are available to do this. The four most common ways to secure plots of land are: Operating lease (cessão de exploração), in case of common land.

On 10 July 2020, the Portuguese Government approved the National Energy and Climate Plan through Council Ministers Resolution no. 53/2020. The plan will shape Portugal's energy and climate policy from 2021-2030 and sets the long-term objective of decarbonizing the economy by the end of 2050.

Now that Portugal is increasingly decommissioning fossil fuel plants, the need to ramp-up the growth and expansion of renewable installed capacity is being brought into sharper focus. Similarly, the need to invest in suitable alternatives and instruments to optimize renewable capacity is also becoming increasingly important.

Article 3 of the Decree-Law defines energy storage as “the transfer of the end use of electricity to a moment subsequent to its production through its conversion into another form of energy, namely chemical, potential or kinetic”.

Storage projects are remunerated according to market rules, as the production facilities that inject electricity into the public network. The implementation of energy storage projects by public entities is subject to public procurement rules, requirements and related regulations.