Renewable energy sources accounted for 62 per cent of electricity consumption in Portugal in the first ten months of the year, with hydroelectric and wind power leading the way. Each of these sources accounted for 22 per cent of supply, whilst solar power stations, which saw year-on-year growth of 10 per cent, accounted for 13 per cent of supply. Biomass power stations supplied 5 per cent. Natural gas-fired generation accounted for 14 per cent of consumption, whilst the import balance, comprising the remaining 24 per cent, recorded its highest-ever share of the national grid for this period.

Compared with the previous year, and over the first ten months of the year, consumption rose by 3% (2.5% when adjusted for temperature and working days), whilst October saw a slight fall (down 0.2%), a figure that remains unchanged when adjusted for temperature and the number of working days. In October, hydroelectric production recorded a productivity index of 0.58 and wind power reached 0.61 (historical average of 1). Conditions were more favourable for photovoltaic power, with the productivity index standing at 1.05. Overall, renewable production met 47 per cent of consumption and non-renewable production 13 per cent. The balance of trade with other countries continued the import trend seen recently, accounting for the remaining 40 per cent of consumption.

In the natural gas market, consumption fell by 20.5 per cent year-on-year, with the electricity generation and conventional power segments recording reductions of 27 per cent and 17 per cent respectively. After ten months, natural gas consumption fell by 1.8 per cent, whilst the conventional segment recorded a reduction of 2.8 per cent.

In October, the national system was supplied entirely via the Sines LNG terminal; via the interconnector with Spain, the system exported the equivalent of two-thirds of domestic consumption. Up to the end of October, the national system was supplied almost entirely from the Sines terminal, with the gas originating from Nigeria (54 per cent), the USA (39 per cent) and Russia (7 per cent). The net export volume via the interconnector with Spain for this period was the highest ever recorded in the national system.