The production of renewable energy supplied 81% of electricity consumption in February, a month in which electricity consumption rose by about 5% year on year, according to data released by REN.
Non-renewable energy production was responsible for 19% of the supply.
“The balance of exchanges with foreign countries was a net exporter, corresponding to about 5% of national consumption,” adds REN – Redes Energéticas Nacionais, in a press release.
According to the company’s data, hydroelectric plants had a productivity index of 1.97 (the historical average is 1), “the highest value ever recorded by REN for February (records dating back to 1971)”, while wind farms had a productivity index of 1.29 (historical average 1).
Solar production registered “the lowest February index ever (0.59), as a consequence of unfavorable meteorological conditions, translating into a year-on-year drop of 19% despite the increase in installed capacity,” notes REN.
Electricity consumption in Portugal rose 5.2% in February, compared with the same period, or 5.7% “considering the correction for temperature and the number of working days,” with “the cumulative for the first two months of the year, consumption increased 6.6% (5.7% with correction for the same effects)”.
The natural gas market increased by 24% in February, compared with the same period of last year, “driven by the electricity production segment, which grew 83% compared to the same month of the previous year,” details REN.
“The conventional segment, which includes the remaining consumers, also grew by 2.7%,” adds, noting that “on the whole, this was the highest monthly consumption since July 2023.”
REN’s data also indicate that cumulative natural gas consumption rose 15%, with increases of 45% in the electricity production segment and 3.8% in the conventional segment.
In the month under analysis, the provisioning of the national system was carried out mainly from the Sines LNG terminal.
According to the company, 76% of national provisioning was secured through the Sines terminal, with origin primarily in Nigeria (39%), the United States (24%) and Russia (13%), while the remaining 24% arrived via interconnection with Spain.
