On 8 January, Decree-Law no. 10/2024 was published in the Portuguese Official Gazette, reforming and simplifying licensing in the fields of urban and land-use planning and industry.
Because of their importance, we would like to highlight some of the changes that have an impact on the promotion of renewable energy projects in their different phases.
A) Development phase:
i. Provision for tacit approval within the scope of the licensing procedure - if the City Council does not issue an express decision within the time limits laid down in article 23(1) of the Legal Regime for Urbanization and Building (“RJUE”), the permit application shall be deemed to have been tacitly granted;
ii. Extension of the Prior Information Request (“PIP”) deadline - the validity period of the favorable prior information is extended to 2 years (previously it was 1) (cf. the new wording of the provisions of articles 17 no. 5 and 17 no. 6 of the RJUE);
iii. New procedure for reclassifying rustic land as urban land - municipalities can now reclassify rustic land as urban, with the category of economic activity space, through a specific procedure, when cumulatively (i) the land is intended for the installation of industrial, storage or logistics activities and support services, or dry ports; (ii) the space is not located in sensitive areas, in the National Ecological Reserve or in the National Agricultural Reserve (article 72-A of the RJIGT);
iv. Elimination of the possibility of choosing between the licensing and prior communication procedures - when it is established under the terms of Article 4(4) of the RJUE that the urban development operation is subject to the prior communication procedure, it is no longer possible to follow the licensing procedure instead (cf. the provisions of the new Article 4(6) of the RJUE);
v. Articulation of the Legal Framework for Environmental Impact Assessment ("RJAIA") and urban planning procedures - for the purposes of the provisions of the RJAIA, whenever it is a question of carrying out an urban planning operation subject to an environmental impact assessment ("EIA") procedure, it is now possible to submit a prior notice before applying for an EIA (new wording of article 119(4) of the RJUE);
vi. Licensing conditions under the Environmental Impact Statement ("EIS") - the conditions set out in the EIS may now determine the change to the urban development project without the need for any additional formality or request to the City Council, in the following situations: (i) in the event that a conditionally favorable EIS has been issued; or (ii) when a decision has been issued on the conditional compliance of the execution project with the EIS, in the event that the EIA procedure has been carried out at the preliminary study or preliminary project stage;
vii. Elimination of the building and use permit - under the terms of article 21 of Decree-Law no. 10/2024, of January 8, as well as the new wording of article 74(1) and the repeal of articles 75 to 79 of the RJUE, permits no longer exist as titles of licenses issued under the RJUE. These titles are replaced by the receipt for payment of the fees due;
B) Construction phase of the power station
i. New procedural deadlines - new deadlines are established for the City Council to decide on the licensing application: (i) a period of 120 days, in the case of construction, reconstruction, alteration or extension, conservation and demolition works carried out on a property with a gross construction area equal to or less than 300 m2; (ii) a period of 150 days, in the case of construction, reconstruction, alteration or extension, conservation and demolition works carried out on a property with a gross construction area greater than 300 m2 and equal to or less than 2200 m2, as well as in the case of classified properties or properties in the process of being classified; and (iii) a period of 200 days, in the case of urbanization works, allotment operations and in the case of construction, reconstruction, alteration or extension, conservation and demolition works carried out on a property with a gross construction area of more than 2200 m2;
ii. Extension of the deadline for building works - the request for an extension of the deadline is no longer limited to a single extension for a period not exceeding half of the initial deadline.
C) After the construction of the power station
i. Elimination of the use authorization procedure - the use of buildings is no longer subject to authorization when there has been an urban planning operation subject to prior control, and this authorization is replaced by the delivery of documents, without the possibility of rejection. The powers of supervision during the work still remain. When there is a change of use without an urban development operation subject to prior control or an urban development operation exempt from prior control, a prior notice with a deadline must be submitted. If 20 days have elapsed since the submission of this communication without the Mayor having ordered an inspection, it is considered that there is no opposition to the use of the building or fraction (new wording of Article 4(5), Article 64(1) and Article 65(6) of the RJUE and new Articles 62-A of the RJUE).
We would also highlight the provision for the existence of an Electronic Platform for Urban Planning Procedures, which will be compulsory for municipalities to use from 5 January, 2026 (article 22, paragraph 1 a) of Decree-Law 10/2024).
With a few exceptions, the provisions of this decree-law come into force on 4 March, 2024.
For more information, this decree-law can be consulted here.
