Portugal will limit lighting and lower temperatures in public places. This was announced this Thursday by the Government as part of its energy sobriety plan. These measures come after efforts requested by Brussels to end Europe’s dependence on Russian gas.
This plan “aims to limit non-essential energy consumption” without “harming the operation and activity of companies”, explained the Portuguese Minister for the Environment, Duarte Cordeiro, during a press conference at the end of a Council of Ministers.
The Government has presented measures such as “reducing temperatures” or even eliminating lighting “when establishments are closed” as well as decorative lights “after midnight”, the minister has detailed. These measures will be mandatory for public administrations but will continue to be recommendations for the private sector.
Reduction of gas consumption in the EU
This sobriety plan is part of the commitment of the European Union (EU) to reduce its energy consumption to face the risk of shortages linked to the war in Ukraine. EU countries want to reduce their gas consumption by at least 15% between August 2022 and March 2023 compared to the average of the last five years during the same period.
Highlighting their lower level of energy connection with the rest of the continent, Spain and Portugal got from Brussels that their objective be set at a drop of only 7%.
The Portuguese government has presented this Monday a package of measures to help households cope with inflation, of up to 2,400 million euros, which will include a reduction in taxes on energy.
Source: BFM TV
