Renewable sources generated two-thirds of electricity in October

In October, renewable sources generated two-thirds of the electricity in Portugal, a milestone that accelerates the transition to more efficient homes and more predictable energy bills. This is not just a number: it translates into savings, cleaner air, and greater autonomy.

Short on time? Here are the essentials:

Renewable sources generated two-thirds of the electricity in October: direct impact on your comfort and bill

In October, renewables ensured 66% of the electricity produced in the country, equivalent to 2,242 GWh out of a total of 3,395 GWh. This performance positioned Portugal ahead of neighbors like Germany (63.2%) and Spain (50%), consolidating a decarbonization pathway with very concrete effects on homes and neighborhoods.

When clean generation increases, the pressure on the wholesale price decreases, and predictability increases. For those living in a house with a heat pump and efficient water heating, the effect is felt in thermal comfort at a lower cost. For those living in an apartment, the increased availability of clean energy reinforces the viability of collective self-consumption and energy communities in condominiums.

In October, the renewable contribution helped avoid significant expenses: about 66 million euros in imported natural gas, 11 million in electricity from abroad, and 60 million in CO₂ permits. In total for Jan–Oct, the country accumulated 6.301 million euros in systemic savings, with 1,266 hours of fully renewable production. These numbers translate into less volatility and opportunities for smart management of domestic consumption.

The case of “Marta and Rui’s House,” on the outskirts of Lisbon, illustrates this well: a well-sized heat pump, combined with solar panels and good airtightness, allowed for stable heating and moderate-cost hot water. On days with strong wind and sun, the dynamic tariff went down, and the family took the opportunity to do laundry and charge their electric vehicle. The secret lay in habits aligned with production.

There is also a territorial effect. Municipalities receive 2.5% of the annual billing from wind farms, enabling local investment in energy rehabilitation of public equipment. Additionally, the sector contributes to the social energy tariff, facilitating access for vulnerable families to electricity under more favorable conditions. It is the ecological transition reinforcing community fabric.

Why does this matter for your house? Because a cleaner and balanced electrical system tends to enhance passive solutions, efficient heating, and load management. The result is a more comfortable daily life, with less waste and greater resilience to price spikes.

• 🌬️ Wind + solar + hydro mean more hours of cheap energy.
• 🔌 Smart scheduling shifts consumption to hours with better prices.
• 🏘️ Energy communities reduce losses and democratize access.
• 🧰 Passive measures (shading, insulation, airtightness) multiply benefits.

In summary: when the country raises the bar for renewables, your home gains in comfort, predictability, and efficiency.

Prices in MIBEL and real savings: domestic strategies to take advantage of clean electricity

Between January and October, the average hourly price in the MIBEL was around 65.6 €/MWh, with over 1,200 hours of 100% renewable production. For consumers with a indexed tariff, this opens a savings window when the house responds flexibly: turning on, heating, charging, and storing at the right times.

How to turn this scenario into a daily advantage? Equipment with hourly programming and basic automation makes a difference. Washing and drying machines can operate when the price curve goes down. Heat pumps can preheat the hot water accumulator before the peak. EV chargers can prioritize windows with higher wind or solar penetration.

For those without photovoltaic solar, the strategy revolves around tariff and adjustment of habits. For those who already have it, it’s essential to optimize self-consumption: direct excesses to hot water, charge home batteries before sunset, and export when it makes sense. A well-configured inverter, together with a simple energy manager, allows for significant gains without complicating the routine.

• ⏱️ Schedule washes and dryings during the lowest-price hours.
• 🌡️ Preheat hot water with the heat pump when energy is cheaper.
• 🔋 Charge the EV and batteries during windows with low prices and high renewables.
• 📊 Monitor the consumption curve with a simple app.

If you are looking for a quick view of how the market operates and how this affects your bill, a good visual starting point is an explainer about MIBEL.

A final tip: when deciding to change tariffs, compare fixed price vs. indexed based on your consumption profile and ability to adjust timings. A small two-week test with hourly records can show where the greatest savings are.

Portugal leads in October: comparison with Germany, Spain, Italy, and France and the European position Jan–Oct

In October, Portugal surpassed most neighbors in the share of renewable electricity: 66%, compared to 63.2% in Germany, 50% in Spain, 34.2% in Italy, and 26.3% in France. This distinction reflects a virtuous combination of natural resources, political decision, and grids that efficiently accommodate wind and sun.

In the cumulative January to October, electricity produced from clean sources reached 75.2%, keeping the country in 4th position in Europe, behind Norway (97.7%), Denmark (88.3%), and Austria (83.1%). This level demonstrates consistency and not just a “lucky month.”

Why this performance? The orography and wind regime help. The historical water contribution adds to system flexibility. Climate goals, combined with gradual licensing and private investment, have allowed wind farms and solar plants to integrate with decreasing costs. Added to this are the roles of energy communities and self-consumption, which bring production closer to consumption.

• 🏞️ Consistent natural resource (wind and sun) across much of the territory.
• 📡 Integration into the grid with hydropower dispatchability for balance.
• 🏛️ Stable policies that signal investment and innovation.
• 👥 Social acceptance and shared local benefits.

For those planning to renovate their homes, this context reinforces the viability of efficient electrical solutions. With greater renewable penetration, heat pumps and thermal solar compete even better with gas boilers. The next step? Equipping buildings to respond to the grid with flexibility and comfort.

The key takeaway: the national advancement is not an isolated point, but a trend with direct impact on how homes are designed and operated.

From the grid to your home: how to design accessible comfort with solar, heat pumps, and passive measures

If you want to cut consumption and emissions without sacrificing comfort, combine passive measures, efficient equipment, and energy management. The principle is simple: reduce the need (insulation and airtightness), produce locally (photovoltaic and thermal solar), and consume when it is cheap and clean (automation and dynamic tariffs).

In the Portuguese climate, external shading, cross ventilation, and thermal inertia make a huge difference during summer peaks. In winter, airtightness, treated thermal bridges, and suitable glass retain heat with less effort from the heat pump. The right “package” saves on contracted power and reduces the energy noise of everyday life.

For a typical house, a well-sized photovoltaic field covers the base of daytime consumption and powers the heat pump for hot water. In an apartment, the path may be collective self-consumption on the building’s roof, sharing production by fraction. Electric vehicle charging can be integrated into the condominium, prioritizing cleaner and cheaper windows.

• 🧱 First, the envelope: insulation, airtightness, shading.
• 🔆 Then, production: PV solar and, if it makes sense, thermal solar.
• 🌡️ Efficient comfort: correct heat pump and adjusted heating curve.
• 📲 Management: scheduling, sensors, and simple monitoring.

Want to go further? Explore energy communities in your neighborhood and integrate with flexibility aggregators when available. Small adjustments in daily life can yield significant savings and a healthier environment for all.

To delve deeper into the integration of solar in buildings, useful resources are gathered on platforms like Ecopassivehouses.pt, with practical ideas and tested solutions on the ground.

More renewables, new challenges: production cuts, storage, and stability — what to do at home to help

As wind and solar grow, there are moments with “excess” generation. Recent examples in Brazil show that, on certain days, the operator significantly reduced wind and solar production to protect system stability. This phenomenon of curtailment can occur when demand and drainage capacity do not keep up with supply.

How to avoid waste and maximize benefits? The way forward involves storage, flexibility of consumption, and fiscal/regulatory planning that provides predictability. For the domestic user, this means prioritizing shiftable uses (hot water, laundry, EV charging) when the grid is “relaxed” and considering batteries, thermal accumulators, and even V2H/V2G solutions when possible.

It is also important to preserve investment signals. The Portuguese experience shows that renewables support public finances and municipalities, finance the social tariff, and boost local economies. Increasing the tax burden in an erratic manner on clean assets would be a setback, discouraging projects that reduce energy bills and emissions. Stability attracts capital, and capital accelerates innovation and green jobs.

• 🔋 Store: home batteries and heat (hot water) to absorb clean peaks.
• 🧠 Flexibilize: schedule consumption and adopt dynamic tariffs.
• 🚗 EV as a resource: charge smartly and, in the future, return energy.
• 🏛️ Predictability: clear rules stimulate investment and innovation.

One last practical point: choose one simple action today — schedule the washing machine for the early morning and adjust the heat pump’s thermostat. These are discreet gestures that, when combined, keep renewables working in your favor and strengthen a cleaner and more stable electrical system.

Source: eco.sapo.pt