The first day of the III Urban Rehabilitation Week in Oporto which runs until October 31, was marked by discussion of the new financial instruments of Portugal 2020 for Urban Renewal and Energy Efficiency, theme focused at the Conference "Oporto and the new Cycle in Urban Rehabilitation".
The new credit instruments are expected with great "expectation" by various market participants, said Jorge Madeira, from Caixa Geral de Depósitos, a view shared by the vast panel of speakers. Indeed, the new round of European Funds, Portugal 2020 will be "decisive" for the conduct of rehabilitation policies.
The financing provided by these funds should favor the achievement of targets set out in the commitment to Green Growth. In 2030 "urban regeneration should represent 23% of the volume of the construction sector of the business" and the energy consumption in homes, private and public administration should be lower by 30%, said Abel Mascarenhas, chief executive officer of IFRRU 2020 and who attended the opening session of the week.
Please recall that last July the Council of Ministers approved IFRRU 2020 - Financial Instrument for the Rehabilitation and Urban Revitalization and also approved the creation of the Financial Instrument for Energy within Portugal 2020 (IFE 2020) .
The day ended with the presentation of the 2016 edition of the National Prize for Urban Renewal, an initiative that recognizes the best urban regeneration projects in Portugal. This session also marked the opening of the exhibition of candidate projects to the 2015 edition of this award.
The Urban Rehabilitation Week, which runs until October 31, took off with a full house on the first day of the event which saw a high public for membership, promising a lively week. Rui Moreira, president of the Chamber of Porto, was at the opening session, stressing that "urban regeneration is increasingly a strategy for the whole city."
The Urban Rehabilitation Week agenda remains filled with lectures, workshops, exhibitions and other activities taking place at the Ateneu Comercial do Porto until 31 October.
Source: Público online
