The Government amended Decree-Law No. 15/2022 to enshrine in the national legal order the Bidirectional Difference Contracts (2w-CfDs). The principle is simple: when market prices rise above the reference value, the difference reverts in favor of the electricity system and consumers; when they fall, the investment is protected. It is a price insurance — for people, for businesses and for those who invest in the country. This decree has already been promulgated by the President of the Republic.
In a release, the Office of the Minister for Environment and Energy explains that the Government is preparing, in coordination with ERSE, the application of these medium- and long-term contracting mechanisms, with priority for the repowering of existing wind farms. Bidirectional Difference Contracts (2w-CfDs) are defined, and have been established as mandatory in the European Union’s Electricity Market Regulation.
The fact that Portugal has been a pioneer in wind energy means that a significant portion of the national wind farms is approaching the end of the equipment’s service life. Replacing the current turbines with modern technology allows a substantial increase in production and efficiency in the same locations, taking advantage of the proven resource and the grid connections already built.
This reinforcement is decisive for meeting the targets of the National Energy and Climate Plan 2030 and for the Government’s objective to reduce national dependence on fossil fuels by half by 2034.
Portugal starts from a position of strength: in the first quarter of 2026, more than 80% of electricity produced on national territory came from renewable sources — the second-highest share in the European Union — and, in 2025, according to ERSE, Portuguese consumers had energy prices lower than the European average.
“Bidirectional Difference Contracts are a tool that will provide greater price predictability, revenue stability and greater robustness of the electricity system, safeguarding the proper functioning of the market. They will be particularly relevant for technologies with higher risk and higher investment, such as wind energy, where we can significantly increase production from the existing wind farms,” stresses the Minister for Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho.
The design of the mechanism, its parameters and the schedule will be announced in due course. The energy transition is the shortest path to stable prices and to national energy sovereignty.
