State gives €30 million in sweeteners to Volkswagen for VW 1D 1

Portugal is to give Volkswagen Europa a €30 million offset, around 10% of the total €270 million that the car maker is investing at its Autoeuropa factory at Palmela.

The money will be used to construct a new spray paint aisle and replace its current oven fed by natural gas in favour of an electric one, thereby helping the company to meet its targets to reduce emissions by 90% to 2030.

The announcement was made on Tuesday during the signing of a joint statement of intention between the government and Volkswagen, formalising a commitment to produce the electric car ID Every1, a concept that will result in the VW ID 1.

With a maximum of €30 million of public money – the maximum permitted by EU laws – “the goal was to compensate the plant’s decarbonisaton effort” said the Minister of the Economy and Territorial Cohesion, Castro Almeida, to journalists after the protocol was signed.

The environmental issue is tied in with the aspects of innovation and exports as fundamental for the financing.

“These three criteria enable us to say that we are giving the maximum support possible”, he added.

The amount will be provided by a contract with Autoeuropa invited to present its candidacy. “It means that this application will be funded to a maximum amount of €30 million”, said thew Minister of the Economy and Territorial Cohesion, Manuel Castro Almeida.

Source: ECO Online

Image: 2025. ANTÓNIO PEDRO SANTOS/LUSA