As Alexandre Gonçalves, one of the technical managers explained, the pilot project consists of creating “a demonstration unit to find solutions for the sustainable management of resources, namely for agriculture and food production”.


The CisWEFE-NEX project, valued at €11.5 million, was officially presented in Portimão. Funded with €9.5 million from the EU’s Horizon Europe Cluster 6 initiative, as part of Circular Cities and Regions, the project will run for 5 years.

The initiative includes three years for implementing an industrial demonstration unit and two years for showcasing the final product. The Algarve was chosen as the pilot region due to its inclusion in the Alentejo-Algarve-Andalusia Euroregion and shared environmental challenges, such as the lack of water.

According to project lead Alexandre Gonçalves, CisWEFE-NEX aims to reuse brackish water and water from olive pomace – a byproduct with high water content – for irrigation in an agrovoltaic production system. The project seeks to demonstrate the environmental and economic sustainability of these resources, enabling agricultural entrepreneurs to replicate the system.

The demonstration unit, covering six hectares in Mexilhoeira Grande, Portimão, will integrate several subsystems, including an agrovoltaic zone, irrigation lagoon, salt flats, and water treatment and desalination facilities.

While EU funding has already been secured, the project is awaiting licensing approval from the Algarve Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR), the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), and the Portimão City Council.