Message from the President - October 2021

We are already counting down to what is the largest annual event held by APREN: the Portugal Renewable Energy Summit 2021, the association's annual conference, which takes place on November 9 and 10 at Culturgest's Grand Auditorium in Lisbon.

 

This event is the return of APREN to physical events (keeping the streaming broadcast with the quality of last year). The attendants will have access to panel discussions in which the most important themes of Renewables will be addressed, by the hand of the most relevant speakers in the sector.

 

The complete program, the confirmed speakers and the various sponsorship options are available on the website from APREN. I take this opportunity to thank the Members who support this edition, and also to all those who have already signed up and secured their place, in one of the most relevant events in the area.

 

In advance of our annual conference, APREN joined Marktest in analysing the Prominence and Image of Renewable Energy through an opinion poll, having come to some very interesting conclusions.

 

The main one, points out that nine out of ten Portuguese consider that the country should invest more in renewable energies, an extremely important signal for all of us. On the other hand, around 60% of respondents are of the opinion that Portugal is doing little to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and only 30% believe that the country is mobilising sufficient efforts to decarbonise in 2050.

 

 

The Portuguese respondents also reveal that they have an in-depth knowledge of what is on their electricity bill, with more than 80% guaranteeing to know partially or totally the items that make up the electricity bill.

 

As for the price of electricity, the answers are clear: 91% of respondents consider the bill to be expensive. More than 80% even believe that the price of electricity in Portugal is higher than the European average. In addition, 88% believe that the effort should be on the production of electricity from renewable energy sources to the detriment of fossil fuels, and more than 52% report that the use of renewable energy from electricity production reduces the sales price shown on the electricity bill.

 

The main results of this study show that the Portuguese population believes in renewables and advocates greater investment in green energies in order to boost decarbonisation sharply. APREN will continue to work to factually explain and show the advantages of electricity produced from renewable sources across the line, including its very positive impact on controlling prices for the sale of electricity on the spot and future markets.

 

Finally, I draw your attention to another classic from APREN, also available for consultation by our members: the APREN Yearbook 2021. Traditionally a book, this year’s edition follows the trend of digitization, preservation of the environment and framed in the policy of the circular economy. The yearbook has an online platform, in order to facilitate access and bring you dynamism. Nevertheless, we still keep the hardcopy version, available under request.

 

We will continue to work on promoting renewables, in thir aim to reduce the impacts of climate change and their ability to control electricity prices on the wholesale market.

 

Because Portugal needs our Energy!