Print Magazine
Brussels Morning Newspaper
Friday, January 27, 2023
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
    • About Us
  • EU institutions
    • Commission
    • Parliament
    • Council
  • Europe
  • World
  • Economy
  • Culture and Society
  • In Depth
    • Ambassador’s Corner
    • The American Angle
    • Sustainable Perspective
    • Europe With Transparency
    • Place de la Bourse
    • The Macro-Economist
    • Southeast Europe
Brussels Morning Newspaper
  • Home
    • About Us
  • EU institutions
    • Commission
    • Parliament
    • Council
  • Europe
  • World
  • Economy
  • Culture and Society
  • In Depth
    • Ambassador’s Corner
    • The American Angle
    • Sustainable Perspective
    • Europe With Transparency
    • Place de la Bourse
    • The Macro-Economist
    • Southeast Europe
Brussels Morning Newspaper
No Result
View All Result
Home Europe

Portugal vows to anticipate carbon neutrality targets to 2045

Marta Pacheco by Marta Pacheco
23 January 2023
in Europe
Environmental,Technology,Concept.,Sustainable,Development,Goals.,Sdgs.

Environmental technology concept. Sustainable development goals. SDGs.

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) Portugal’s Environment Minister Duarte Cordeiro wants to anticipate the country’s carbon neutrality from 2050 to 2045, rejecting economic development based on the use of fossil fuels.

Cordeiro, speaking in Santarém on January 19,  together with the National Defence Minister Helena Carreiras, was attending a military ceremony in which the Army Mechanized Brigade was awarded recognition for its environmental management system, contributing to sustainable development practices.

“This prize has, since 1993, reflected this fruitful partnership, much older, and recognizes that only with joint action by the different areas of government is it possible to achieve the objectives we set ourselves in terms of the environment and climate action, which, as we know , are extremely demanding,” Cordeiro said.

Pioneers on climate action

Portugal was among the first countries in the world to set 2050 carbon neutrality goals. The country’s energy and climate policies push for carbon neutrality primarily through broad electrification of energy demand and a rapid expansion of renewable electricity generation, along with increased energy efficiency.

“Portugal has played a leading role in international commitments on climate action. We were pioneers, as early as 2016, in the commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, which we want to bring forward to 2045”, said Cordeiro, having underlined that the government rules out any possibility of basing economic development on the use of fossil fuels.

Cordeiro recalled the closing of coal-fired power plants on national soil, the last of which in the Abrantes region, in November 2021, whose emissions, in 2017, came to represent around 17% of the national total. The way forward, Cordeiro noted, is a commitment towards renewable energies in Portugal. 

“Achieving carbon neutrality in Portugal requires emission reductions of more than 85% to anticipate the goal in relation to 2045, and a carbon sequestration capacity through the use of soil and forests of 13 million tons of carbon per year,” added Cordeiro.

For that purpose, Cordeiro argued the necessity to change the linear economic model in which the country extracts, consumes and discards, towards a circular economic model, regenerative in the use of resources. 

In a country review last year, the International Energy Agency’s Executive Director praised Portugal’s progress on decarbonising electricity generation and on electrification of building energy demand: “Portugal has found a good balance of ambitious targets and competitive support measures needed to drive a cost-effective energy transition.”

Renewables over fossil 

Between 2013 and 2022, Portugal conquered “a capacity of 5GW in renewables and only two coal-fired power stations (1.8GW) are left in the system”, Cordeiro said, highlighting that “renewables account for around 16,3 GW of installed capacity”.

In terms of electricity production, the Minister added, “in 2020 and 2021 renewable energy was around 60% of total production” and “solar went from 3% of total renewable production in 2015 to around 11% in 2022”, anticipating shorten the deadline of another objective.

In 2022, Portugal ranked fourth (after Poland, the Netherlands and France) among the European nations installing solar power. The remarkable feat of the Portuguese transition, however, is the incredible 251% growth compared to the amount of solar installed in 2021, which catapulted the country to the top 10 for the first time.

“Over the next two years, another 2.8 GW of new capacity will be able to enter based on the licenses already allocated. That is, we will be able to double the installed solar capacity, which allows us, with optimism, but realism, to consider that we will anticipate our 2030 goals already in 2026,” Cordeiro added.

Tags: Biweekly MartaBrussels Latestcarbon neutralityEurope-FeatureMain-Slider
Facebook Twitter Youtube LinkedIn

About Us

Brussels Morning is a daily online newspaper based in Belgium. BM publishes unique and independent coverage on international and European affairs. With a Europe-wide perspective, BM covers policies and politics of the EU, significant Member State developments, and looks at the international agenda with a European perspective.

Category

  • Ambassador’s Corner
  • Belgium News
  • Brussels
  • Commission
  • Council
  • Culture and Society
  • Diplomacy
  • Economy
  • EU Institutions
  • Europe
  • Europe With Transparency
  • Features
  • In Depth
  • Member States
  • Middle East Eye
  • Opinion
  • Our pick
  • Parliament
  • Place de la Bourse
  • Southeast Europe
  • Sustainable Perspective
  • The American Angle
  • The Macro-Economist
  • Uncategorised
  • US Elections
  • World

More info

  • About Us
  • Advertising
  • Cookies Policy
  • Contact Us
  • FAQ
  • Jobs

Brussels Morning Newspaper - All Rights Reserved © 2020

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Brussels Bubble
    • Parliament
    • Commission
    • Council
  • Wider Europe
    • Member States
  • World
  • Business & Society
  • Europe With Transparency
  • Culture & Society
  • Policy Talks
    • Place de la Bourse
    • The Macro-Economist
    • Sustainable Perspective
    • Ambassador’s Corner
    • The American Angle
    • Southeast Europe
  • Print Magazine

Brussels Morning Newspaper - All Rights Reserved © 2020

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT