Of this amount, about 14% of the surveyed companies have been awaiting ‘green light’ for more than five years.
The investment projects awaiting approval or not commenced due to environmental process blockages amount to 1.3 billion euros. This figure comes from a survey highlighting the main challenges companies face in realizing their investments.
The greatest constraints are found in projects for constructing new facilities (43% of the total), expanding existing ones (33%), and installing new equipment (21%).
According to the surveyed companies, around 76% of environmental investment blockages result from processing time frames associated with changes to Municipal Master Plans (PDM), Detail Plans (PP), Urbanization Plans (PU), and processes for declassification from the National Ecological Reserve (REN) and the National Agricultural Reserve (RAN).
The agencies responsible for the major delays include the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), cited in 75% of cases, the Regional Coordination and Development Commissions (CCDR), in 72% of situations, and the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF), in 71% of cases.
Municipal Councils, the Directorate General for Food and Veterinary (DGAV), and IAPMEI are also mentioned as contributors to the delays.
In response to these challenges, 58% of the surveyed companies advocate for “the limitation of binding maximum deadlines and tacit approvals in the processing of various stages of the process and the reduction of deadlines for the preparation of opinions,” according to the document from AIP.
About 38% propose “the reduction of entities involved in the licensing process.” Meanwhile, 76% desire environmental licensing to be “exclusively dependent” on the Ministry of Economy, whereas it currently primarily depends on the Ministry of Environment.
Nearly three-quarters (71%) acknowledge “ideological biases in the preparation of opinions” and believe that “technicians lack incentive and hierarchical support for the risks of their decisions.”
Limiting telework for entities that prepare opinions is supported by 72% of the companies surveyed.
Only 51% of companies have “medium to high” expectations regarding the success of state reform to reduce licensing bureaucracy.
The survey was conducted by AIP among 238 companies of various sectors, sizes, and regions, from September 19 to 30, 2025.
