Background information

The allocation of funding from the ‘Vale Eficiência Programme’ is run under investment TC- C13-i01 - Energy Efficiency in Residential Buildings of Component C13 - ‘Energy Efficiency in Buildings’ of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), in accordance with Council Implementing Decision COM(2021) 10149/21 of 6 July approving the PRR for Portugal.

Content of measure

The aim of the Efficiency Voucher Programme is to help mitigate situations of energy poverty and vulnerability by awarding one or more Efficiency Vouchers, up to a maximum of three, with a unit value of €1,300, to economically vulnerable families living in buildings with potential energy poverty, so that they can improve the energy performance of their permanent homes and their living conditions.

The Programme has a total budget of €130 million, of which €104 million is allocated to the current 2nd Phase.

Beneficiaries of the Efficiency Voucher Programme are natural persons who hold an electricity supply contract, are eligible for the social electricity tariff, or beneficiaries of support for the purchase of bottled liquefied petroleum gas, i.e, who fulfill the following conditions:

1. They are beneficiaries of the social electricity tariff.

2. They are not beneficiaries of the TSEE, but at least one of the members of their household a beneficiary of one of the following minimum social benefits :

3. solidarity supplement for the elderly;

4. social insertion income;
5. social invalidity pension from the special invalidity protection scheme;
6. supplement to the social benefit for inclusion;
7. old age social pension;

8. unemployment social benefit.

9. Is the owner, usufructuary or tenant and permanently resides in the home for which they are applying to the Efficiency Voucher.

The Programme aims at supporting interventions of the following types:

• Replacement of non-efficient windows with efficient windows, with a minimum energy class equal to ‘A’;
• application or replacement of thermal insulation in the building envelope, as well as the replacement of entrance doors;
• installation of space heating and/or cooling systems and domestic hot water systems with an energy class of ‘A’ or higher;
• installation of photovoltaic panels and other renewable energy production equipment for self-consumption.

Use of measure

The government plans to hand out 100,000 efficiency vouchers by 2025.

The Portugal News, 21 October 2023, reported that the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate, Ana Fontoura, declared that the first phase of the Programme fell short of the expected objectives, which was the main reason that led to the in-depth review of this incentive.

According to the Secretary of State, the first notice, which began on 5 August 2021 and prolonged until 31 May 2023, provided for the allocation of 20,000 vouchers. In total, 23,000 applications were submitted, with 16,000 vouchers being awarded. However, only 9,600 vouchers were used.

In the first notice, only families covered by the social electricity tariff (around 700,000 beneficiaries) could apply, but in second notice, all families with at least one member of the household benefiting from minimum social benefits will be eligible to apply.

According to the respective notice of invitation to tender, the allocation for the 2nd Phase of the "Vale Eficiência" Programme is €104,000,000, which will be converted into a maximum of 80,000 vouchers for economically vulnerable families and potentially in a situation of energy poverty. Applications to this 2nd Phase are open from 20 October 2023 until 30 September 2025.

Monitoring data available at the Fundo Ambiental website indicate that, by 31 January 2024, there was a total of 23,327 applications and 12,954 efficiency vouchers were awarded.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Does not apply to workers	Does not apply to businesses	People on low incomes

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government EU (Council, EC, EP)	National Recovery and Resilience Facility

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Consulted	Consulted
Form	Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies	Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Social partners jointly
• Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level

Involvement

The social partners were consulted in the Social Concertation Standing Committee on the RRP.

The social partners are also members of the National RRP Monitoring Committee.

Views and reactions

The views of social partners on this specific measure are not known.

Sources

• 20 October 2023: 100 mil vales para combater a pobreza energética (www.portugal.gov.pt)
• 20 October 2023: Programa Vale Eficiência 2nd phase (2ª FASE) (www.fundoambiental.pt)
• 21 October 2023: Efficiency Vouchers for vulnerable families (www.theportugalnews.com)