Government asks the EU to strengthen the E-Lar program with 50 million euros

The Minister of Environment and Energy explained today in parliament that the Government requested from Brussels an increase in the E-Lar program of 50 million euros, as the initial allocation was spent in a few days.
The minister, who was speaking during the discussion of the State Budget for the next year, said that this request for reinforcement was made within the framework of the reprogramming of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR).
Maria da Graça Carvalho had already announced at the beginning of the month that she would request an increase in the program. On October 6, the Government announced that the E-Lar program, aimed at replacing gas appliances with electric ones in homes, received about 40,000 applications in six days, with the “allocated funding” of 30 million euros being “exhausted”.
The program was highlighted on the website of the Environmental Fund, of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, and applications opened on September 30, closing less than a week later.
The E-Lar program aims to improve the thermal comfort of homes and support families in purchasing efficient equipment and in the electrification of energy consumption.
In the discussion of the Budget, the minister also recalled that, still within the framework of the reprogramming of the Sustainable Operational Program, there was a substantial increase in funding for water, with 344 million euros allocated for water resilience.
Still in the area of water, the minister said that the Government decided to proceed with the construction of the desalination plant in Sines, recalling that the works for the desalination plant in Albufeira will begin next month.