EDP involved in projects that bring €100M worth of EU funds to Portugal

EDP announced on Wednesday that it will participate in projects that will ensure €100 million worth of European funds for research and development in Portugal regarding renewables, decarbonisation, green hydrogen or artificial intelligence applied to preventing and fighting forest fires.

“The global budget for the projects which EDP coordinates or is involved in exceeds €170 million; out of that amount, €100 million worth of European funds will now be distributed among the more than 125 partners involved in the selected projects,” said EDP in a statement.

The selection of these projects was made after applications submitted in early 2021 under the EU Green Deal programme, promoted by the European Commission. Negotiations and administrative processes will take place over the next three years, to then be able to start in the last quarter of 2021. The average expected duration is five years.

According to the company, the selected projects will develop in different areas:

• Offshore renewable energy production, including hybridisation concepts that bridge the gap between wind power and floating photovoltaic systems. This project will also be dedicated to ocean energy, involving the study of concepts such as green hydrogen production, also offshore, with a view to optimising the integration of renewable energy production.
• Production of green hydrogen on a pre-commercial scale, aiming at developing the production technology and increasing its competitiveness.
• Development of artificial intelligence and advanced drones, aiming at preventing and fighting forest fires, developing synergies between different critical infrastructures, such as water and electricity distribution systems, and local entities.
• Decarbonisation of key infrastructures, such as ports and other activities, as is the case of the Sines thermoelectric power plant, currently being decommissioned. The aim is to demonstrate various technologies – such as green hydrogen or those linked to mobility – and digital tools that promote the “smartification” of these infrastructures, as well as greater efficiency and digitalisation.

“The projects selected under the EU Green Deal include important demonstration activities in Portugal involving several companies, but also organizations from Portugal’s scientific and technological system,” said EDP in the same statement, adding: “The entrepreneurial spirit and technical skills of these domestic and European organizations, together with EDP’s leadership in aspects pertaining to the energy transition process, will now be boosted by European Green Deal funds.”