The decision, voted through by the Socialists, Left Bloc, Communists, Greens and the Animal and Nature Party, supported a government recommendation that oil exploration in soythern Portugal cease with immediate effect.

The proposal was voted against by the Social Democrats and the Popular Party, who previously formed the coalition government which signed off these contracts, one of them days before last October’s general elections.

A second proposal, to further evaluate negative environmental impacts of oil prospection in the Algarve was also approved by a parliamentary majority.

According to the National Authority for the Fuel Market (ENMC) the prospection for oil at Aljezur and Tavira will be conducted over a period of eight years and at a final estimated cost of four million euros.

The ENMC President Paulo Carmona said back in December following opposition to oil drilling in the Algarve that “it is necessary to do away with pre-conceived ideas.

“There isn’t a country that has discovered energy resources and that hasn’t explored them, and of course we must be careful with the environmental aspects”, he added.

The head of the ENMC insisted that in this current phase of prospecting and exploration, there are no environmental risks. Only if oil or natural gas were to be found and proceedings moved on to a phase of exploration, would it be necessary to carry out a public consultation and study environmental impact, he explained.

“Portugal is not a rich country and we want to develop our natural resources in a sustainable manner” Paul Carmona stressed, backed by several representatives of exploration companies who guaranteed that “very strict” European environmental standards are being met.

The chairman of one of the energy companies due to start prospecting for natural gas off the Algarve coast, had said in April that exploration was set to begin in October.

According to Partex, who will work alongside Repsol, prospecting will start in early autumn between 40 to 50 kilometres off the coastline, directly in line with Faro.

António Costa e Silva said all mechanisms are already in place for prospection for natural gas to start in the autumn.

The Partex chief stressed that “there will not be any oil rigs coming up in front of beaches”, adding that all work “will be conducted under the sea level.”

António Costa e Silva explained that the mission to find natural resources in Portugal is one of “national sovereignty and only once an inventory has been drawn up of what resources lie beneath the ocean floor should the discussion as to who might or might not explore the country’s mineral wealth take place.”

The Partex-Repsol consortium currently holds the rights to four sites off the Algarve coast.