“The energy transition is a path that must be taken by everyone together, without leaving anyone behind, and the zones now approved are the result of this, ensuring harmonious and sustainable coexistence in the future”, defended the president of APREN, Pedro Amaral Jorge, in a written response to Lusa.

The association was part of the working group that participated in this process and highlighted the involvement of the various local communities, the need to protect fishing and fishing communities and environmental protection, “in order to find a common denominator that serves all actors”.

The PAER defines the areas and volumes of the national maritime space for the commercial exploration of offshore wind energy and was approved by the Council of Ministers on January 9th and published in the Official Gazette on February 7th.

APREN considers the approval of the plan “a very important step in fulfilling the promise of offshore wind power, and the proven potential economic benefits it will bring in the future”, both in the production of “clean” electricity and in the creation of a business value chain.

This value chain, he highlighted, will include civil construction, metalworking, port infrastructure, port operators, and ship operators, in addition to the various promoters who have already shown interest in exploring these areas, “despite the premature abandonment of some global players in this sector”.

After approval of the PAER, the auction for exploration of the defined areas is launched.

The project, which began with the previous socialist government, envisaged the creation of an offshore wind farm in Portugal, with 10 gigawatts (GW) of power, and defined Viana do Castelo, Leixões, Figueira da Foz, Ericeira-Cascais and Sines as possible areas for the exploration of renewable energy.

Several fishing industry associations have expressed concerns about the impact on fishing communities and marine wildlife, and the project’s Strategic Environmental Assessment assumed that the installation of offshore wind farms “is likely to lead to the scrapping of vessels” and reduced fishing.

The recently approved plan foresees a total exploration area of ​​2,711.6 km2, a figure that includes an area of ​​5.6 km2 in Aguçadoura (Póvoa de Varzim), for the installation of non-commercial research and demonstration projects, which represents a reduction of 470 km2 in relation to the proposal submitted for public discussion, with the reduction of the area in Viana do Castelo and the exclusion of the Ericeira area.