The incorporation of renewables in electricity was 46.8% in August10.4% less than in the same month of 2021, keeping Portugal as the fifth European country with the highest incorporation of renewables in Europe, according to APREN.
According to the Renewable Electricity Bulletin, published monthly by the Portuguese Renewable Energy Association (APREN), “between August 1 and 31, 2022, the incorporation of renewables was 46.8%, totaling 3,169 GWh [Gigawatt/hora] produced, and “the decrease of 10.4% compared to August 2021 is mainly due to the decrease in the hydraulicity index, which translated into a sharp decrease in water production.”
The association also highlights that “the production of water and the maximum percentage of storage in reservoirs reached minimum values compared to the same period of the last 10 years, which contributed to an increase in production from fossil sources“.
In the accumulated until August, in mainland Portugal 27,822 GWh of electricity were generated, of which 54.6% came from renewable sources, leaving Portugal as “the fourth European country with the highest incorporation of renewable energies in electricity generation”, by behind Norway, Austria. and Denmark, which obtained shares of 99.3%, 80.5% and 77.2%, respectively.
According to APREN, from January to August, the electricity generation sector emitted a total of 4.1 MtCO2eq (metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent), the renewable electricity sector avoided the emission of 5.0 MtCO2eq and the expenditure of 2,758 million euros in the importation of natural gas.
In the same period, an average hourly price was recorded in the Iberian Electricity Market (Mibel) in Portugal of 192 euros/MWh (Megawatt/hour), which “represents an increase of more than three times compared to the same period last year ”.
APREN’s analysis indicates that “from June 15, when the Iberian mechanism for limiting the price of natural gas came into operation, until August 31, savings of 54.5 euros/MWhc were generated, which was equivalent to a 16.5% reduction in the average hourly rate”. price in the MIBEL”.
“Savings due to the cap on the price of natural gas, corresponding to the difference between the price without the mechanism and the price with compensation to be paid to the natural gas plants, reached a maximum value of 134.7 euros/MWhc and a minimum of 5.62 euros/MWhc”, he details.
In total -he adds- 34.6 of the 67.8 TWh (Terawatts/hour) produced were subject to the consumption adjustment mechanism in the Iberian Peninsula.
Between January 1 and August 31, the APREN bulletin also indicates that the Production in the Special Regime (PRE) allowed an accumulated saving of 5,684 million euros, of which 595 million euros only in the month of August.
Source: Observadora
