The Prime Minister has announced the launch of a €600 million support scheme designed to provide funding for businesses whose energy costs account for more than 20% of their production costs.
At a ceremony marking two years since he took office as Prime Minister, held at his official residence in São Bento (Lisbon), Mr Montenegro announced that the fund will be called “Portugal Energy Resilience” and will be financed by the Banco Português de Fomento (Portuguese Development Bank).
“It is intended to provide credit to meet the cash flow and working capital needs of the companies most affected by rising energy costs. It is yet another measure in response to the current situation. It is aimed at companies where energy costs account for more than 20% of their production costs,” he explained.
According to the Prime Minister, “the state will provide a public guarantee covering 70% for large companies, and 80% for small and medium-sized enterprises”.
“It will strengthen companies’ ability to respond to international instability and to protect our competitiveness, our jobs and the resilience of our national productive fabric,” he said.
This was the cherry-on-the-cake of a day in which the PM sought to focus on the last two years of government, and everything that the AD coalition has achieved so far.
The essence of his message was that “today Portugal is better, and so are the Portuguese”, referring to tax cuts, wage and pensions increases and “many agreements with careers within public administration”.
Source: SIC/ LUSA
