Portugal reached this Monday, August 31, the last day to fulfill the milestones and targets of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), with the Government guaranteeing 100% execution. The Minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion, Manuel Castro Almeida, revealed in Estremoz that Portugal contracted projects equivalent to 101% of the Plan, creating a margin to accommodate possible delays. The strategy allowed for a distinction between meeting the obligations assumed with the European Commission and the physical completion of all approved projects.
The minister acknowledged that there are works still in progress in different parts of the country, but stated that these interventions do not call into question the fulfillment of the contracted targets. Castro Almeida stated that the 44 planned reforms are completed and that the delayed works correspond to projects beyond the PRR, not representing non-compliance with European obligations. The Government also highlighted the decisive role of municipalities in the execution of investments.
The Portuguese PRR has a allocation of 22,216 million euros, divided into 16,325 million in grants and 5,891 million in loans, covering 44 reforms and 117 investments. Approximately 403 thousand applications were approved during the Plan's execution. In housing, the target of 26 thousand housing solutions was exceeded, with more than 28 thousand homes completed by the end of August, a number the minister himself mentioned orally could exceed 30 thousand.
Portugal will also need to present to the European Commission, during September, the 10th and final payment request. The Recover Portugal Mission Structure indicated that financial execution will continue after the Plan's closure and that the final European disbursement will be received by the end of 2026. On August 7, the European Commission disbursed 2.32 billion euros related to the ninth payment request, bringing the total received to 17.23 billion euros, corresponding to 78.67% of the allocation.
