Portugal retail fuels long-term outlook

Bordering the Atlantic coast, Portugal's oil products market is influenced as much by Northwest Europe as the Mediterranean region. Portugal is a mature market for oil products where demand is concentrated in the two main urban centres of the country, around the capital Lisbon and the northern city of Porto. Portugal has one remaining active refinery, Galp’s facility in Sines (with a capacity of 220 kbd), after Porto refinery stopped processing crude in 2021. Even though Portugal remained long on gasoline, the closure of Porto refinery resulted in a structural deficit in diesel. As monopoly refiner, Galp dominates the inland wholesale market for oil products through its control over much of the country’s distribution infrastructure. This dominant position makes the Portuguese fuels market highly concentrated. Galp’s main competitors in the Portuguese downstream market are BP, Repsol and Cepsa.