"This is a political subject, but obviously if the State Budget [for 2020] can indeed dispense with this VAT on electricity, for us that is fantastic, because Portugal has the eighth most expensive electricity in the world, taking into account a range of taxes and tariffs that are applied to it," said Pedro Amaral Jorge when asked about the prospect of a cut in VAT on electricity.

Speaking to Lusa on the day APREN is organising the 2019 Portugal Renewable Summit in Lisbon, the organisation’s president said that "the less taxes are levied [on electricity] the better the perception of consumers, and [the more] thermal and energy comfort people can have if the price of electricity can be lowered by means of tax reductions.”

The Expresso and Observador newspapers had reported that although the Socialist government has only just begun to discuss details of the draft budget for 2020, it already faces the prospect of a one-off coalition of opposition Social Democrats, Communist Party and Left Bloc approving a reduction in VAT on electricity to the minimum rate of 6 percent instead of the current standard rate of 23 percent - a move that would deprive the state of several hundred million Euros in revenue.

Amaral Jorge argued that for Portugal to achieve its energy transition targets, as outlined in the National Energy and Climate Plan (PNEC) for 2030, "it is important to ensure regulatory stability and that there are no surprises from the point of view of taxation or extemporaneous taxation of renewables, disrupting the ability to raise investment."