France President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Luís Montenegro in Paris.
For the first time in 26 years, a French president visits Portugal. Emmanuel Macron will be in Lisbon and Porto, this Thursday and Friday, to reinforce relations between the two countries.
The last state visit of a French president to Portugal had happened 26 years ago, In 1999, with Jacques Chirac.
Now, Macron will spend 48 hours in Lisbon and Portoaccompanied by wife Brigitte Macron, and Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot, Delegate Minister to Europe, Benjamin Haddad, and Delegate Minister for Foreign Trade and French abroad, Laurent Saint-Martin.
Portugal and France must Sign several bilateral agreements in the areas of defense, artificial intelligence and ocean preservation.
After the Meeting with Donald Trump In the White House, with the main theme, Macron should discuss with Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, the essential issue of security in Europe.
Macron will also want to confirm Portugal’s commitment to purchase up to 36 Caesar Cannons (Truck equipped from a artillery system) by 2034.
Portugal is the third commercial partner of Francerepresenting “a volume of exchanges of 15 billion euros” to the Gauls, according to radio accounts.
France is also one of the main foreign employers in Portugal“With over 100,000 salaries in 1,200 branches of tricolor companies”, underlines the same radio.
Portugal and France close agreement for Biomethane
One of the bilateral agreements that Portugal and France will sign, as part of Macron’s visit, Biomethane production.
Flooene and GRDF, the largest operators of the gas distribution network in Portugal and France, will reinforce the strategic partnership for the Development of renewable gasesa step that can accelerate biomethane production in Portugal.
Flooene’s executive president, Gabriel Sousa, explains to Lusa that the agreement provides for the continuation of the “sharing of legislative and regulatory experiences”, as well as solutions for the adaptation of infrastructures to integrate renewable gases into the distribution network of.
France is considered one of the markets with the best results In the implementation of Biomethane, with GAZ Réseau Distribution France (GRDF) connecting about three new units of biomethane per week to its distribution network.
Flooene’s official considers that on the basis of these results is not just “technology”. “Success goes a lot through regulatory solutions which are eventually favorable to this type of projects, ”he notes, lamenting that in Portugal does not happen.
“The wheel is inventedWe should be able to enjoy and do in a short time what other countries took seven to eight years, ”warns Gabriel Sousa.
The student and the teacher
Although they admit that France eventually assumes The role of teacher and Portugal that of studentthose responsible for the two companies argue that the French group also eventually comes to drink knowledge of the experiences that are being developed in the national territory, namely in the area of.
O Action Plan for Biomethane It establishes the objective of replacing almost 10% of natural gas with biomethane by 2030 in Portugal, a goal that the CEO of Flooene says “not impossible to reach”.
By the way, according to Gabriel Sousa, the country “has a potential that can go beyond 60% gas consumption be replaced by biomethane ”.
Since biomethane is a molecule equal to that of natural gas, the current network is able to this renewable gas, and it applies to hydrogen if consumed in mixture and not 100%, the CEO explains, giving as an example the pilot project that are developing in the Seixal, with a mixture of about 15%.
At the moment, Portugal has a pilot unit of biomethane production in Mirandela. GRDF has over 600 centrals to inject into the network.
