Portugal’s energy security in the context of moving away from fossil fuels

Abstract

: Portugal is a country on the Iberian Peninsula with a population of just over 10 million people. The country has no reserves of energy resources such as oil, natural gas, or coal and is therefore dependent on their imports. Nevertheless, it has no problems ensuring energy security. It imports oil from countries such as Brazil, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Angola, and gas from Algeria, Nigeria, the United States of America and Qatar. All imports of crude oil and most imports of petroleum products pass through the two main ports of Sines and Leixões, while gas is imported via the Sines LNG terminal and two cross-border gas pipelines at Campo Maior and Valença do Minho. Coal imports are no longer a problem following the closure of the last coal-fired power plant in 2021. As recently as 2019, fossil fuels accounted for as much as 76% of Portugal’s total primary energy supply, with oil accounting for 43%, but the majority of this demand was consumed by road transport (51%), followed by oil-based industries (16%) and household heating (5%). Now, however, the situation is changing. Hydropower and rapidly developing wind and solar energy account for a large share of electricity generation. By 2030, Portugal plans to commission between