Renewable Energy
Clean energy is the energy of tomorrow
The world is currently facing vital decisions about the energy of the future. We want to be an active voice in making these decisions by making the power of nature our energy.
While global energy demand is expected to increase by more than 30% over the next 20 years, the need to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to combat climate change is one of the major challenges of this century. Added to this is the need to produce energy at affordable prices and more recently, particularly in Europe, the urgency of safeguarding energy independence in the face of new geopolitical threats.
The use of endogenous and renewable sources is the basis of the new energy matrix. And because the electricity sector is the one that can most easily and efficiently induce the decarbonisation of economies, this is where the transition is advancing at a rapid pace. In Portugal, 60% of the electricity consumed is already of renewable origin, placing the country among the most advanced in Europe. Large hydro and wind power plants are still largely responsible for this change, but photovoltaic plants on an industrial scale and, increasingly, smaller plants for individual or collective self-consumption, are also growing rapidly.
The pace of installation of this generating capacity, its variability and the spreading of generating centres throughout the country pose new challenges to the electricity grids. Distribution grids play a pivotal role. About 75% of this distributed generation is connected to the high, medium and low voltage grid, under concession to E-REDES. Over the last 20 years, connected units amounted to 5.5 GW, with an additional 3.7 GW expected in the next four to five years.
Distributed generation is one of the most efficient forms of decarbonisation, because it enables the use of resources available throughout the country, bringing production closer to consumption, reducing losses and even helping the network in the local management of the balance between supply and demand, and is advantageous for all system agents. Part of this new decentralized capacity will come from self-consumption units, with emphasis on the collective through the figure of Renewable Energy Communities (RECs).
The predicted massification of distributed generation, the accelerated growth of electric mobility, and new forms of interaction between consumers and the grid impose a profound transformation on the distribution grid, planning models, and command and control models.
E-REDES has an extensive investment programme underway to provide the electric grid with new features and smarter equipment, including meters, capable of optimizing operations and energy management, while ensuring a new consumer engagement platform.