Energy Flash: Oil & Gas | Environmental impact assessment
The Portuguese Parliament approved Law no. 37/2017, of June 2, which amends the general legal framework applicable to the environmental impact assessment (EIA) set out in Decree-Law no. 151-B/2013, of October 31.Law no. 37/2017 broadens the scope of the EIA legal framework to cover prospection, exploration and extraction of hydrocarbons projects which previously were not subject to this regime. At the heart of this initiative there are not only environmental concerns regarding the prevention and control of pollution levels in connection with the development of these projects, but also the need to safeguard citizen participation during the whole process.
This amendment will impact the future development of oil & gas projects in Portugal, including ongoing projects, since the law sets out that this regime is also applicable to concession contracts currently in force. This will surely raise some issues in the industry.
Read the full text in our Energy Flash below (in Portuguese).