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In with the in-box

01 July 2005

It's official – Eu16.799 billion on vital infrastructure projects between now and 2009. For the first time in three years the Portuguese government appears to be serious about infrastructure development and public-private-partnership (PPP). By Sean Keating

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The Socialist election victory in February was greeted with ambivalence in the Portuguese banking sector.

Three changes of government in as many years, a history of long-term state investment plans that have normally gone way beyond the term of any sitting government (and have thus changed with every change of government), cuts in public spending under the previous SDP regimes and the interminably slow pace and expense of Portuguese tender and approval processes – the combination had left Lisbon bankers looking at projects abroad or domestic sectors where projects could be done despite the government (renewables, for example).

The pace has still to pick up. But the new government headed by Jose Socrates, a civil engineer on the right of the party who was Minister of the Environment under the Guterres government (the originator of PPP in Portugal), has issued a Eu25 billion ($30 billion) investment plan with a...


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