Government wants to see Portugal export products derived from hydrogen by 2026 – Energy

This Tuesday, the prime minister promised a clear and persistent strategy to invest in the development of green hydrogen, considering that it can place Portugal with energy freedom as a country and in the position of exporter of renewable gases.

This position was defended by António Costa in Seixal, in the speech with which he closed the opening session of the first Green Hydrogen injection project in the natural gas network in Portugal.

“It’s important that we dream and really do the work. It may not be in a year or two. But we have to have a clear strategy and the persistence to pursue it, because the rationale is very clear: We have one of the best structures, one of the most modern infrastructures and one of the best coverage in the distribution infrastructure in the natural gas network”, maintained the leader of the executive. In his speech, the prime minister referred to the threats that resulted from the Russian military intervention in Ukraine, especially in terms of energy dependence on third countries.

“I believe that there is an advantage that is evident to everyone since February 24, 2022: No one can be totally dependent on a supplier or external suppliers for the energy they need. Energy autonomy means freedom”, he stressed.

For this reason, according to the Prime Minister, “when Portugal invests in renewable energies, in its energy autonomy, it is also reinforcing its own freedom — the freedom that is the greatest source of energy”. “If we want to have a more sustainable future from an environmental point of view, more prosperous from an economic point of view and freer from a political point of view, then we really have to continue this commitment to renewable energies”, he advocated.

Earlier, António Costa mentioned that one of the biggest weights in national expenditure in terms of the balance of transactions results from energy imports.

“Here we have an opportunity to reduce imports, to replace them and, in the future, the ability to export what we can produce ourselves. Every five percent of hydrogen that is injected is five percent less natural gas that we import” , exemplified. In the previous speech, the Minister of the Environment, Duarte Cordeiro, expressed his conviction that in 2026 “Portugal will export products derived from hydrogen for the first time”.

“By the end of this mandate we will export something to show that this is really where a great opportunity lies in terms of the future for the country. If the price of energy is not the first topic of current conversation, then it is because what we were able to produce in terms of renewable energies, as well as the protection we were able to give consumers and industry, today allowed us to demonstrate that the country has results to present at this level”, he defended.

In the first speeches of the session, the mayor of Seixal, Paulo Silva, addressed the issue of ongoing decarbonization projects in his municipality, while Diogo da Silveira, leader of the Board of Directors of Floene, a company with German and Japanese capital, highlighted the competitive conditions existing in Portugal in terms of green hydrogen.

“The Portuguese infrastructure is robust and with high levels of efficiency, so its optimization should impact all sectors of the economy, including families and industries. Portugal has an advantage in this area compared to other countries, because it has a high energy capacity water, but also solar and wind energy, which can be used to produce green hydrogen”, he noted.