Order no. 30/2026 of the Director-General of the Directorate of Energy and Geology (“DGEG”) has been published, establishing the rules for calculating the deadlines set out in Articles 14 and 58 of Decree-Law no. 15/2022, of January 14, repealing and replacing the previous Orders nos. 14/2025 and 16/2025.
The Order applies to all projects holding a valid production license or proof of prior registration issued under Decree-Law no. 15/2022, provided that the operating license or operating certificate has not yet been issued and the respective title has not been declared expired.
The order distinguishes between two separate regimes, depending on the type of title in question:
1. Production licenses — exclusion of periods from the calculation of deadlines (Article 14(10))
Holders of production licenses who wish to invoke the exclusion of periods from the calculation of deadlines must notify the DGEG in writing, by means of a self-declaration accompanied by the following documentation:
- For the purposes of Article 14(10)(a): documentation attesting to the actual start of construction, namely a copy of the prior notification to the Municipal Council or, in the case of the licensing procedure, a copy of the document proving approval of the construction project.
- For the purposes of Article 14(10)(b): a statement from the RESP operator attesting to the existence, scope, and estimated timeline of the upgrades, confirming that they constitute significant upgrades necessary for the reliability and safety of the public grid.
- For the purposes of Article 14(10)(c): a document issued by the competent judicial or administrative authority certifying that the proceedings are pending.
The responsibility for demonstrating the existence and uninterrupted continuation of the circumstance lies exclusively with the interested party.
2. Prior registrations - suspension of the deadline (Article 58(2)(b))
In the case of power-generating facilities subject to prior registration, the suspension of the deadline applies exclusively when there is a delay in the operator making the conditions for connection to the RESP available; the grounds for exclusion provided for in Article 14(10) of Decree-Law no. 15/2022 do not apply to prior registrations.
To invoke the suspension, licensees must notify the DGEG in writing of the delay, accompanied by a justification and a statement from the RESP operator attesting to the delay.
Notifications and requests submitted under Orders no. 14/2025 of April 2 and no. 16/2025 of April 7 will be received and reviewed in accordance with this Order.
This Order enters into force on the day following its publication on the DGEG website (i.e., April 21) and may be consulted here.
