The President of Endesa Portugal, Nuno Ribeiro da Silva, says that half of the energy bills in Portugal is "payment for taxes and fees.”
"Energy has been the cash cow of government revenues," said the Endesa boss whose company is a leader in the renewable energy sector in Europe, Americas, Asia, Oceania and Africa, producing solar, wind, hydro and geothermal energy.
During an interview on Antena 1, the president of Endesa Portugal also criticised the excessive taxation on the sector.
"Governments all point to the fact that electricity or liquid fuels are expensive, but they never look at their consciences and recognise that energy has been the cash cow of government revenues, and in particular of our government. If we see the electricity bill we pay at home, more than 50% is taxes and fees, "said the businessman.
Nuno Ribeiro da Silva said that, "no one has questioned why we have the highest level of VAT on electricity. If it is an essential - which it is, of course - why does the government insist on applying the maximum VAT rate on an essential product?"
The businessman said that the way the State behaved is like "a tax vampire on an essential product."
In the same interview, da Silva added that he had no doubts that situations of uncertainty, such as subsidies for renewable energy production, has led foreign companies to reconsider their investment plans in Portugal. There is also the social tariff that companies consider should not be paid by the corporate sector but by central government.
As for the recently announced €5 billion investment envisaged by Italy's ENEL, Nuno Ribeiro da Silva argued that, as things are at the moment, Spain will attract most of the investment.
