Portuguese Parliament Advised to Assess Feasibility of Small Modular Reactors in the Country

On July 30, the Portuguese Parliament received a draft resolution recommending that the government adopt a pro-nuclear stance and conduct an assessment of the feasibility of using small modular reactors in the country. The draft emphasizes that, against the backdrop of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, successive wars in the Middle East, and the increasing fragility of international supply routes, energy security is no longer merely an economic or environmental issue but a core element of national sovereignty and strategic autonomy. Portugal should not ideologically exclude any low-carbon technology without objective research.

The draft resolution states that Portugal's current energy policy should balance supply security, economic competitiveness, consumer protection, and emission reduction goals, neither preemptively rejecting any technology that could contribute to these objectives nor subordinating national decisions to the choices of other countries or doctrinal biases. The draft advocates that "supporting nuclear energy" means recognizing its low-carbon legitimacy, supporting nuclear R&D innovation, and acknowledging its complementarity with renewable energy. Even if the final assessment concludes that building domestic reactors is technically and economically unsuitable, that conclusion should derive from solid research rather than preconceived rejection. Conversely, if SMRs are proven viable, Portugal should participate in European decision-making, track technological developments, and transparently evaluate all options for strengthening energy sovereignty.

This marks another formal parliamentary move to place SMRs on the agenda since Portugal shut down its first and only research reactor in 2004 and has long avoided nuclear power discussions at the public level. The draft itself does not authorize reactor construction and is merely recommendatory in nature, but it advances the "SMR feasibility study" as a government obligation, echoing the dual climate-supply pressures on Western Europe from recent events such as the Almaraz extension controversy in Spain, EDF's restart in France, and heatwave-related shutdowns in Central and Eastern Europe. If the government accepts the case, it could trigger the first written responses from the Portuguese Environment Agency and nuclear safety authorities on an SMR regulatory framework, moving the country from a "nuclear legal vacuum" to a "pre-feasibility stage."