Castro Marim secures full EU funding for water works to Cortelha
Castro Marim council has signed a deal with the Fundo Ambiental to cover 40% of the cost of a water supply project serving Cortelha, Marroquil, Amendoeira, Beliche and Corte Gago. Combined with 60% already approved under Portugal 2030, the works, already underway for months, will now be fully funded by European money. A reservoir is also being built at Pero Vaz, with a planned link to the central supply subsystem via Vale do Gato still awaiting funding, in a component estimated at €2.5 million. The project follows earlier water network extensions in Pisa Barro and Azinhal and Odeleite.
Barcelos puts new €35.4m wastewater plant out to tender
The municipality of Barcelos has opened a public tender worth €35.4 million for a new wastewater treatment plant, with bids due by 23 October and 910 days allowed for construction. The facility will replace the current plant, built in 1999 and now considered obsolete, unable to cope with the town's demographic, urban and industrial growth, particularly textile industry effluent. The new ETAR will use advanced biological treatment plus filtration and ozone to remove dyes and pollutants, and will generate its own solar and hydroelectric power. Over 73,000 people are expected to benefit, with treated water returned to the Cávado river inside a protected natural park.
Ponte de Lima opens tender for €4.6m wastewater plant
The Ponte de Lima municipal council has launched a public tender for the design and construction of the Poiares wastewater treatment plant (ETAR), with a base price of €4.6 million. Published in the official gazette (Diário da República), the notice allows around 720 days to complete the contract in the Poiares parish, Viana do Castelo district. The work covers the project design and construction of the plant along with the infrastructure and interfaces needed for it to operate, including installation, testing and commissioning. Bids must be submitted by the 30th at 23:59.
BioSmart wins €1.5m contract to clean Alentejo sewage lagoons
BioSmart, part of the NOV Ambiente group, won a public tender from Águas Públicas do Alentejo worth €1.5 million to remove sludge from wastewater treatment lagoons. The three-year contract covers 35 treatment plants across 13 Alentejo municipalities, including Beja, Odemira and Santiago do Cacém. Sludge will be extracted using a pumping raft in nine lagoons and excavators in the remaining 26, then dried before being tested and sent for agricultural recovery or composting. The company's CEO described the award as recognition of BioSmart's technical capacity for large-scale environmental operations.
Portugal opens €30m call for wastewater reuse projects
The Sustentável 2030 programme has launched a €30 million funding call to adapt wastewater treatment plants (ETAR) for producing and distributing reclaimed water for non-potable uses. The PACS-2026-23 notice aims to boost circularity of water resources and strengthen responses to water scarcity. Municipalities, their associations, state and local business-sector entities, and municipal or intermunicipal concessionaires can apply via the Balcão dos Fundos. Applications run continuously in two phases, from now until September 2027, with co-financing of up to 85% across mainland Portugal's NUTS II regions.
Monção bans basements and bedrooms below flood level in new building rules
Monção's municipal master plan (PDM) now incorporates flood-risk management rules from the national PGRI for the Minho-Lima river basin, published in the Diário da República. In areas identified as flood-prone, new buildings can no longer have basements or bedrooms below the defined flood level, and in very high or high-risk zones, housing below that level is banned outright. Buildings must resist flood damage and use materials able to withstand prolonged water contact. After flood disasters, reconstruction is restricted, with preference given to relocating destroyed buildings outside risk zones and renaturalising artificial waterways.
Aveiro launches €36.2m tender for waste collection and street cleaning
Aveiro's municipal council has unanimously approved an international public tender for waste collection, transport and urban cleaning services, worth a base €36.2 million, more than three times the previous contract's €11.2 million. The eight-year deal, which also covers management of the municipal Ecocentre, demands higher quality standards and stricter monitoring, including unannounced inspections and financial penalties for non-compliance. It foresees more frequent collection in some areas, reinforced street sweeping and expanded cleaning at São Jacinto beach. The current contract, due to expire on 30 September, has been extended by six months to allow the new process to conclude.
Ponte de Lima buys five new waste collection vehicles
The municipality of Ponte de Lima has expanded its waste collection and street cleaning fleet, buying two heavy vehicles and three electric vehicles for €464,128.11 plus VAT. The council says the new vehicles meet EU safety and noise emission standards and will boost the response capacity of environmental and urban hygiene services across the municipality. It expects the renewed fleet to improve collection efficiency, cut problems linked to older equipment, and strengthen safety conditions for municipal workers. The electric vehicles are also presented as a step towards a more sustainable, lower-impact municipal fleet.
Infraestruturas de Portugal launches €750,000 solar and EV charging tender
Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP) has opened a €750,000 public tender to install solar panels and electric vehicle chargers at its Campus do Pragal in Almada. The plan includes two photovoltaic units with a combined 680 kWn capacity, on the roof of Building 2 and in the car park, plus 20 EV charging points. The system will be linked to IP's technical management platform for remote monitoring of production, consumption and charging. The works, framed as a strategic green public procurement initiative, are expected to take around 850 days to complete.
Plenergy opens two more fuel stations, reaches 22 in Portugal
Fuel retailer Plenergy has opened new service stations in Paredes and Loures, completing four openings across four districts in a single month alongside Castelo Branco and Ponte de Lima. The network now totals 22 locations in Portugal. The stations operate under Plenergy's hybrid model, offering fully automatic 24-hour refuelling plus daytime staff support, with prices around 10% below the regional market. The company aims to reach 30 active stations in Portugal by the end of 2026, with new projects already under way in Palmela, Coimbra, Vale de Cambra and Almada.
