Paris, July 7, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal and Spain have called for an increase in the European energy budget and asked for “special attention” to be paid to electricity interconnections with France, given the Iberian Peninsula’s limited connection to the European market.

This position was conveyed in Paris by the minister for the environment and energy on Monday at the end of a ministerial meeting on the energy interconnections programme for South-West Europe, which brought together representatives from Portugal, Spain, France, the European Commission and a German delegation.

At the end of the meeting, Maria da Graça Carvalho told journalists that the meeting “went well”, and that a further technical meeting had been agreed for September, with the same working group.

The minister also added that the issue of interconnections will be on the agendas of the forthcoming Portugal-France and Spain-France bilateral summits – the dates of which have not yet been announced – continuing the discussion “at the highest level”.

“Portugal and Spain have asked the European Commission for the Union to pay special attention to this matter – not only from the Commission, but also from the Parliament and their colleagues in the European Council,” said Maria da Graça Carvalho.

According to the minister, the request comes at a time when “the next Community support framework, the next budget for the European Union” is under discussion, in which Portugal and Spain are advocating for a greater priority to be given to energy.

Maria da Graça Carvalho said she had advocated “a high priority for the energy sector in general and, in particular, for electricity grids and interconnections, notably the interconnection between France, Spain and Portugal”.

The minister also stated that she had drawn the attention of the European Commissioner for Energy and Housing, Dan Jørgensen, to the specific situation of the Iberian Peninsula, which she described as an “island” from an energy perspective.

She emphasised that the interconnection between France and the Iberian Peninsula remains at 3.1%, despite the issue having been first raised at a bilateral summit in 2003.

Maria da Graça Carvalho recalled that the issue was mentioned “at a summit in Figueira da Foz”, when Durão Barroso was prime minister.

“We still have an interconnection between France and the Iberian Peninsula of 3.1%,” she stated, arguing that Portugal has been managing its electricity system “with the difficulties of an island”.

In this regard, she argued that this situation justifies additional European support for Portugal and Spain, similar to that provided to island countries and territories.

When asked about the examples she had in mind, the minister cited Ireland, Malta and Cyprus, as well as the outermost regions, where there are derogations relating to the management of electricity systems in an island context.

“The challenges involved in managing an electricity system on an island are different from those in a broader internal market,” she said.

The minister also said that Portugal had asked the European Commission for “special attention to be paid to funding storage”, “flexibility measures” and “strengthening the electricity grid”.

When asked about the European Commissioner’s receptiveness to the arguments put forward by Portugal and Spain, she replied: “He seemed receptive”.

The minister added that Dan Jørgensen had expressed a willingness to advocate for a more ambitious European energy budget, although she pointed out that such a decision does not depend solely on him.

Regarding the interconnection with France, she acknowledged that it is “an expensive link” and that it has “some environmental impacts”, but argued that such projects are feasible when there is political support and dialogue with the public.

The minister cited the Minho-Galicia interconnection, inaugurated last week, as an example, saying it had been completed in “one year and eleven months”, following negotiations with local authorities, compensation arrangements and route changes.

“It is not easy to build an interconnection like the one we have built. But this has shown that it can be done,” she concluded.

“We have been waiting a long time and we hope that things will now move more quickly,” she concluded, referring to the interconnections with France.

SCR/AYLS // AYLS

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