These warnings were conveyed by the leader of the Left Bloc Jorge Costa in his speech before the Standing Committee of the Assembly of the Republic, in which he warned that the country is facing “a time bomb that will end up exploding in the bills of consumers in Portugal".

"The Government thinks it is buying time, waiting for the storm to pass, but forecasts indicate the opposite: High prices are here to stay and will eventually translate into prices for consumers," said Jorge Costa.

In his speech, he pointed out that the current high is generated by the price of gas and the rise in the price of CO2 emissions.

“This rise is reflected in the cost of energy produced in thermal power stations, those that, most of the time, define the price of electricity in the wholesale market. If the rise is going to continue, not least because it is driven by the necessary measures to combat climate change, it is now necessary to produce compensation measures. The Government must urgently act to prevent an increase in energy prices for people in the midst of a crisis”, he said.

Jorge Costa later expressed apprehension about the signals that have been transmitted by the Government in relation to this matter, saying that the executive continues to forecast insignificant increases in electricity.

“None of the reasons invoked by the Government are consistent. They say that solar plants will lower bills, but the problem is that none of the plants that resulted from auctions is connected to the grid. And these connections will still take two or three years to have any expression”, he said.

The leader of the Left Block also rejected the argument that the wind sector will contribute to lowering bills, since in his opinion, “after 15 years of subsidised prices by consumers, the lowering of bills was postponed by a decision by the Government PSD/CDS-PP in 2013”.

“It is still necessary to review the remuneration of the wind farms, a measure that was defended by the PS, but later rejected by the Government. Wind power plants must transition to a new fixed tariff, equivalent to the one resulting from an upcoming auction for new plants. According to calculations, consumers would save between 1000 and 1500 million euros in the next few years”, he concluded.