The government is once again granting exceptional aid of “up to EUR 17.4 million” to public passenger transport to mitigate the impact of the rise in fuel prices in the last quarter of the year.
The aid aims to “mitigate the consequences of the escalation of fuel prices in the public passenger transport sector for the period between October 1 and December 31, 2022, to be operationalized by the Environmental Fund,” according to a resolution of the Council of Ministers. approved on December 15 and published on Thursday in Diário da República.
The extraordinary and exceptional aid “is paid in one lump sum and corresponds to the following amounts: a) EUR 228 for each licensed taxi; b) EUR 1,260 for each heavy passenger car licensed for public transport, of categories M2 and M3 or equivalent and using fossil fuels other than natural gas; c) 1,890 euros for each heavy passenger car, licensed for public transport, category M2 and M3 or equivalent, licensed for public transport and running on natural gas”.
Under the resolution, which will take effect from the date of its adoption – December 15 – aid will be granted to fossil fuel vehicles that have been shown to have a valid mandatory periodic inspection.
The aid amounts are calculated on the basis of a value of 20 cents per liter for vehicles using fossil fuels other than natural gas and 30 cents per liter for heavy vehicles running on natural gas, “assuming a consumption of 380 liters per month in taxis and 2,100 liters per month in buses, covering the period between October 1 and December 31, 2022”.
The Government diploma notes that the costs resulting from the planned support are shared – by EUR 7.4 million for this year and EUR 10 million for 2023 – and points out that “the amount set for the 2023 financial year may be increased by the balance calculated in the previous year”.
This measure is supported by the Environmental Fund, with resources from the Portuguese Environment Agency, and will be “paid until March 31, 2023, in a lump sum and after validation that the vehicles for which support is requested comply” with the required rules.
In order to claim support, vehicle operators in public passenger transport must complete a registration form, which is made available by the Environmental Fund on its website.
According to the diploma, the payment of the aid “depends on whether the information provided by the operators is validated and deemed eligible by the Institute for Mobility and Transport”.
In January this year, the government created extraordinary support aimed at companies active in the sector, referring to the period between November 1, 2021 and March 31, to respond to the rise in fuel prices with the “urgent application of extraordinary measures “. .
Subsequently, the executive has set the maintenance of this support at amounts of EUR 25.1 million and EUR 17.4 million respectively, corresponding respectively to the periods between April 1 and June 30 and between July 1 and September 30.
Given the current context, it was judged that “exceptional circumstances resulting from the rise in fuel prices require the enforcement of extraordinary measures”, to underline the “important role of public transport in promoting more sustainable mobility patterns and in promoting the decarbonisation of mobility”. .
Source: DN
