The European Commission has approved a €30 million Portuguese state aid scheme for agricultural, fishery and aquaculture companies facing higher fuel and fertiliser costs linked to the Middle East crisis.
The support will be delivered through direct grants and will be available until 31 December 2026, the Commission informed on Wednesday.
A maximum of €50,000 can be paid to any one company under the scheme.
Part of the aid will be tied to fertiliser costs in agriculture, with payments set using a fixed amount based on a company’s agricultural area in hectares and the number of animals it has.
Fuel support will be set at €0.10 per litre of agricultural or marine diesel consumed between 1 April and 30 June 2026.
Approved under EU’s temporary Middle East crisis rules
The Commission said it cleared the measure under its Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework, a set of temporary rules adopted on 29 April 2026 that allows EU countries to grant certain types of state support more easily during the crisis.
The temporary framework covers sectors described by the Commission as among the most exposed — including agriculture, fishery, transport and energy-intensive industries — and is due to run until 31 December 2026.
The Commission said it concluded the Portuguese scheme met the conditions set out in the temporary framework and EU state aid rules.
