The British company Lightsource BP presented a reformulation of the Sophia solar farm project in the district of Castelo Branco, after strong opposition that culminated in November 2025 with a record of more than 10,000 contributions to the public consultation. The installed capacity was reduced by 34% to 573 MWp, the panel area decreased by 35% to 258 hectares and the enclosed area shrank by 32% to 1,178 hectares. The project is now exclusively in the municipalities of Penamacor and Idanha-a-Nova, with no longer any panels in the municipality of Fundão.
The estimated investment is now around 315 million euros, compared to the previous 600 million, with the company believing the amount will be even lower, although it has not disclosed concrete figures. Construction is expected to start only in 2029. At the same time, Lightsource BP announced the cancellation of the Beira project, also in the district of Castelo Branco with 270 MWp, after an unfavorable opinion from APA due to significant negative impacts on local ecosystems, which made a reformulation financially unviable.
The British company assures it has intensified active listening with local communities, implementing various compensatory environmental measures. The forest compensation ratio is 18 times higher than required by law, 39,000 compensation trees will be planted, the distance to the black vulture's roosting site has increased from 300 meters to more than four kilometers, and the replacement of 200 hectares of eucalyptus with holm oaks is planned. Hybridization with batteries for energy storage is also planned.
Lightsource BP has committed to 20 million euros for community projects over the 40-year lifespan of the solar farm, including one million euros for the "Shared Light" program with cheaper energy, almost 1.5 million for the "Energy Bank" against energy poverty and eight million for a Local Social Investment Fund. The schedule envisages public consultation in October, an environmental impact statement in the first quarter of 2027 and the start of construction in the first quarter of 2029.
