Portugal has intensified pressure on France and the European Union to accelerate long-delayed electricity interconnections, with a top minister arguing that the Iberian Peninsula remains an "energy island" despite leading Europe in renewable energy deployment.
"From the point of view of electricity and energy in general, we are an island," Portuguese Energy Minister Maria da Graça Carvalho told reporters on 6 July. "And that's more difficult to manage. We need more flexibility, more storage and much greater grid resilience than if we were fully integrated."
