By the end of 2021, AICEP raised EUR 2.7 billion in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Portugal, an amount that includes the largest project of the decade, EUR 657 million from Repsol. This means that attracted investment will exceed the 2019 record by 229%, with three of the last four years breaking barriers, always above EUR 1 billion.
Eurico Brilhante Dias, secretary of State for Internationalisation, affirmed that this achievement proves that "Portugal continued, in a pandemic, to have the values that guarantee its international interest: it is a safe destination, there is a lot of talent and quality of life, which, together with the move towards greater strategic autonomy that the EU is making, increases the opportunities for us to take more and more space in global affairs".
This amount of investment reinforces Portugal's constant improvement in business environment rankings, namely its integration in EY's top 10 of the best European countries to attract FDI, ahead of countries such as Finland and Sweden. This study also highlights that 37% of respondents plan to invest in Portugal or expand the activity they already have in the country and half consider that the attractiveness of the country will increase in the coming years.
