An agreement that makes it possible to “overcome a historic blockade”. Thus, on arrival at the European Council and already after meeting the Spanish Prime Minister and the French President, António Costa classified the consensus reached by the three countries on the interconnection of a gas pipeline.
Initially, the project was only intended for connections for the supply of natural gas, originating from the Iberian Peninsula and reaching France via the Pyrenees. But, announced this Thursday the Prime Minister (PM), the current project also makes room for the supply of so-called green hydrogen. This would have been one of the keys to unlocking the agreement, as France had shown resistance to the construction of an Iberian gas pipeline that would cross the country.
According to Antonio Costa, the agreement reached makes it possible to “finally surpass the old project called MidCat and develop a new one called the Green Energy Corridor, which, according to the Portuguese Prime Minister, will allow to extend the interconnections between Portugal and Spain, between Celorico da Beira and Zamora, and also to create a connection between Spain and the rest of Europe, connecting Barcelona and Marseille (BarMar), by sea”.
Hours after António Costa’s announcement, the president of the republic reacted to the Franco-Iberian news. According to Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the agreement is “very important” and will benefit all of Europe. According to the head of state, these new connections could even be “very useful” for central and northern Europe – regions that, he says, “need an alternative solution urgently with winter approaching” [ao gás fornecido pela Rússia através do mar Báltico]”.
The discussion about building a pipeline entering Europe through French territory is not new and appeared in 2009 in the government of José Sócrates. In 2014, former Prime Minister and then President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso championed the idea as a way to reduce dependence on Russian gas, and in March 2015 he even met his successor Jean-Claude Juncker with former French President François Hollande, the former Portuguese Prime Minister Passos Coelho and former Spanish Head of Government Mariano Rajoy then discussed strengthening Iberian links with the rest of the European energy market.
But to overcome resistance on the French side, the new project now includes green hydrogen – something MidCat didn’t do. For the President of the Republic, this factor is positive, as “the problem that existed with regard to gas was overcome by also using the gas pipeline for the transport of green hydrogen”, in which “France was particularly interested”. “Common sense prevailed, because if it was in the interest of Europe and deep down in the interest of the three, because there were differences that were not decisive, there was no reason not to agree”said the President of the Republic in Dublin, where he is making an official visit to Ireland.
Macron speaks of ‘historic deal’
With this agreement, Portugal, Spain and France came to the summit with a strong argument to demand “solidarity”, especially with Germany, in the context of the crisis caused by the rise in energy prices. Frenchman Emmanuel Macron, who until this Thursday has been a staunch opponent of the Iberian connection, considered the “historic agreement” an “important point in the context of European solidarity”. And the “goal” set by Germany to connect Portugal to the rest of Europe “has been achieved”.
Asked at the entrance about the accusations of lack of solidarity addressed to Germany [Macron tem criticado as políticas alemãs de combate à inflação]Chancellor Olaf Scholz rejected the criticism. “We are Europe’s biggest contributors,” he replied. Remember that your country is responsible for “26% of the [comunitário]”, the chancellor says that Germany is “developing many solidarity mechanisms, as in the previous crisis”. Scholz also gave the example of the recovery and resilience mechanism, which Germany “developed”, as it is “a good opportunity to act together, even in these times.” The German chancellor recalled “that many of the funds developed with the recovery fund have not yet been used” – something the Portuguese government also confirms.
But the French president, who admitted at the Prague summit two weeks ago the possibility that the country would accept “the interconnections”, said he also implied criticism of the German government and said France was also “for a Europe solidarity.” “. “, at a time of “crisis” that calls for “joint” responses.
The governments of Portugal, France and Spain will meet again in Alicante on 8 and 9 December, in the margins of the Mediterranean Summit, to discuss how to implement the project. At the meeting, Pedro Sánchez explained, the three governments will discuss, among other things, “the deadlines for investment” or “the amount of economic resources” that will be mobilized to run the venture: “A requirement we talked about about before several months, I would say years, to the French government,” he classified.
Source: DN
