The Regional Government has welcomed an agreement reached during a strike by REN Atlântico workers, which allowed six liquefied natural gas tanker containers destined for Madeira to be loaded at the Sines terminal.
The agreement, confirmed over the weekend, was reached with the Union of Workers in the Manufacturing Industries, Energy and Environmental Activities of the South (SITE Sul).
The six containers are expected to arrive in Madeira on Thursday. The vessel will unload nine tanker containers at the Port of Caniçal, as three had already been loaded before the strike began on Sunday.
A further 28 containers, shipped from Lisbon on Saturday, arrived at the Port of Caniçal on Sunday, according to the Regional Secretariat for Economy.
“We welcome the agreement that made it possible to load the six containers destined for Madeira and thereby safeguard the Region’s supply requirements,” said the Regional Secretary for Economy, José Manuel Rodrigues.
Rodrigues explained that the solution followed efforts initiated before the strike began. These included asking the Minister for Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, to adopt urgent measures to protect Madeira’s natural gas supplies.
The matter was also addressed during an arbitration commission meeting on Sunday, which resulted in an agreement with the unions.
“The outcome demonstrates the sense of responsibility shown by the parties involved and the importance of acting promptly,” he said.
The strike by REN Atlântico employees, who operate the Sines liquefied natural gas terminal, ends today. It was called by SITE Sul and the Federation of Metal, Chemical, Electrical, Pharmaceutical, Pulp, Paper, Printing, Press, Energy and Mining Unions (Fiequimetal).
The dispute concerns demands for an early-retirement scheme to compensate employees for the physical and personal strain associated with shift work.
Madeira receives an average of 35 natural gas tanker containers each week.
According to the Regional Secretariat for Economy, 1,795 containers were unloaded in the Region during 2025, supplying approximately 40.7 million cubic metres of natural gas, equivalent to 476 gigawatt-hours of energy.
This corresponds to the electricity consumption of approximately 120,000 households with moderate usage and accounts for around 20% of Madeira Island’s electricity production.
So far this year, 1,251 natural gas containers have been unloaded in the Region.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
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