The Bank of Portugal (BdP) maintains independence that does not align with the intervention of the Inspectorate-General of Finance (IGF) as an independent regulatory authority, and therefore, the Court of Auditors may, within its mandate and if it considers it a priority, oversee this act of public expenditure, stated Filipa Calvão in an interview.
However, as of now, overseeing this operation between the central bank and Fidelidade is “not among the immediate priorities of the court,” she added, emphasizing that “this audit” was not requested from the institution.
After the Finance Minister requested an IGF audit regarding the construction of the new central bank building in Entrecampos, Lisbon, the current governor, Álvaro Santos Pereira, warned that the banking supervisor cannot be audited by “politically controlled institutions,” like the IGF, noting that it can only be subjected to internal audits or those conducted by the TdC.
The president of the TdC noted that there are other priority projects to oversee. “We approved a strategic plan this October that outlined a set of priority intervention areas focusing significantly on social service sectors for the population,” such as health, social security, education, and housing, or projects involving “major public investment,” such as infrastructure and transportation, she explained.
In the regulation sector, such as the BdP, Filipa Calvão considers that “the public expenditure of a regulatory authority on building construction is not an immediate priority for the court.”
“There may be other issues here that deserve closer monitoring. But surely, it is not ruled out,” affirmed the president of the TdC.
At the heart of the matter is the contract to purchase the new BdP central building, made with the insurer Fidelidade, after it was reported in July that the operation includes “high-risk” contingencies, which could result in the final cost exceeding 192 million euros.
The 192 million euros agreed with the insurer pertain only to the structural works (excluding finishes, paint, final flooring, interior finishes, and more).
Further reports mention alerts from BdP consultants regarding licenses and the potential necessity for an environmental impact assessment for the parking lot construction.
The building’s construction prompted the Finance Minister to request an IGF audit on the matter, particularly regarding the value of the future facilities, when the central bank’s governor was still Mário Centeno.
On September 25, during a parliamentary hearing on the matter, the former governor stated that the “final value” of the institution’s facilities would depend on future decisions but assured that the move would lead to operational savings.
At that time, he mentioned that the publicly available information on the project was shared “in a truncated manner” and explained that the final cost “does not exist today” due to pending decisions about the interior, such as “carpets, furniture, decoration.”
Centeno clarified that the building’s acquisition value of 192 million euros “has no uncertainty.” The preliminary contract with Fidelidade includes a set of contractual clauses that protect the bank’s position. “A different matter is what has not been finalized yet,” including an additional cost concerning the building’s interior, he stated.
