Communiqué from the Council of the Government - Communication

The Council of the Government, which met on September 4, 2025, in Ponta Delgada, decided to adopt the following measures:

1. Express sorrow and offer solidarity for the tragic Glória funicular derailment in Lisbon, which resulted in 16 fatalities. The Government of the Azores extends its deepest condolences to the families of the victims and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured in the accident.

2. Approve the Resolution establishing an analysis committee, with the legal status of a temporary mission structure. It will have as its mission to proceed with the discussion and consideration of the Functional Programme presented by the Board of Directors of the Divino Espírito Santo Hospital (HDES) in Ponta Delgada, intended to provide the basis for the repair, resizing and reorganisation works carried out at the HDES, thereby supporting the Regional Government's decision.

The fire that struck the HDES on May 4, 2024, led to the declaration of the state of regional public disaster.

The terms for resuming HDES operations required the identification and adoption of a series of deferred response measures aimed at immediately addressing operational disruptions caused by the fire at that hospital unit and the Regional Health Service, as well as measures to repair the existing material damage, which involve promoting the restoration of the building where the HDES is installed.

As part of the repair measures, the resizing works and the reorganisation of the resumption of differentiated healthcare provision at the HDES were an immediate priority, as the current building has been in use for 25 years, which, added to the time since the architectural design and corresponding specialities were drawn up (1989), reveals an obsolete structure.

The reorganisation and expansion of the HDES have been repeatedly postponed over time, largely due to the difficulty of carrying out works in a fully functioning hospital unit. The experience of other health units has led to the permanent postponement of improvement works, despite bottlenecks in certain services, namely the emergency department, operating rooms and the intensive care unit.

In this scenario, the Regional Government has decided to request the development of two functional programmes covering the repair, reorganisation and resizing works of the HDES, based on the Guide for the Development of Functional Programmes of the Health System Central Administration, whose mission, among others, is the optimisation of health facilities and equipment, given the lack of a similar service at a regional level.

Both functional programmes have been completed. One was designed by ARIPA – Ilídio Pelicano, Arquitetos, Lda., the company entrusted with the initial architectural design of the HDES, by the winning consortium awarded with the works contract (Engil / Marques, ACE), which was completed in 1998. The development of the second functional programme was entrusted to Antares Consulting - Consultoria de Gestão, Lda., a company with over 20 years of experience specialising in the health sector, following a direct award procedure in consultation with three entities.

Both functional programmes have been completed. One was designed by ARIPA – Ilídio Pelicano, Arquitetos, Lda., the firm entrusted with the initial architectural design of the HDES by the winning consortium to which the respective works contract was awarded (Engil / Marques, ACE), completed in 1998. The preparation of the second functional programme was entrusted to Antares Consulting - Consultoria de Gestão, Lda., a company with over 20 years of experience specialising in the health sector, following a direct award procedure in consultation with three entities.

Therefore, it is necessary to establish an analysis committee to discuss and consider the Functional Programme presented by the Board of Directors of the Divino Espírito Santo Hospital in Ponta Delgada, which is intended to provide the basis for the repair, resizing and reorganisation of the HDES, supporting the Government's decision.

3. Approve the Resolution authorising the transfer of the sum of €2,401,035.94 (two million, four hundred one thousand, thirty-five Euros and ninety-four cents) to IFAP, I.P.- Financing Institute for Agriculture and Fisheries, intended to cover the costs incurred in implementing Community regulations under the EAFRD (Measure 13 – Payments for areas subject to natural or other specific constraints).

4. Approve the Proposed Regional Legislative Decree amending the Regulations for the Recruitment of Teaching Staff in Preschool, Basic Education and Secondary Education.

Following the amendment to the Teaching Career Statute for the Region, as well as the legislative amendments introduced by the National Government regarding the working conditions and recruitment of teaching staff in Mainland Portugal, and motivated by the growing shortage of teaching resources at a national level, it is important to not only introduce the necessary legislative adjustments but also mechanisms that promote educational stability in Azorean schools, ensuring that teachers in the Azores have stable work, social, and family lives.

Alongside the regulation of incentives for the establishment of teachers, stipulated by the Regional Government, it is important to ensure that professionals who apply for teaching positions on islands and in schools or in teaching area groups with severe shortages, and who are interested in benefiting from these incentives, are given priority for placement. This procedure, now applicable to any new employment situation, introduces a competitive ranking mechanism that aims to positively differentiate the process of placing teachers on islands where there is a shortage of these resources.

A mechanism is also introduced to prioritise permanent positions and fixed-term contracts for teachers with three successive annual full-time contracts, safeguarding the number of permanent positions on the island and in the teaching area group for the same number of teachers who meet this condition. This will be a strong incentive to maximise annual applications and provide fixed-term teachers with an additional specific mechanism to combat job insecurity.

Moreover, the mechanisms for annual mobility due to illness or disability of teachers or a first-degree relative and in parental situations will be introduced, which will reflect the actual proximity of the new workplace to the one where family support must be provided, ensuring greater control and focus on the work-life balance.

5. Approve the Resolution establishing the Roadmap for Carbon Neutrality in the Azores by 2050.

This Roadmap for Carbon Neutrality aims to outline a clear strategic vision and the various possible cost-effective, technologically feasible and economically viable routes in different coherent scenarios for the Region's economic and demographic development.

The goal is for the Region to achieve carbon neutrality in its economy by 2050, resulting in a neutral balance between greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration through land use and forests.

6. Approve the Resolution determining the necessary steps for the separation of the economic unit responsible for ground handling services and its transfer to SATA Holding, S.A., created as part of the SATA Group's corporate reorganisation process.

This measure falls within the scope of the SATA Restructuring Plan approved by the European Commission Decision on June 7, 2022, which determines the need to separate the aforementioned economic unit to make it eligible for divestment.

7. Pass the Resolution approving the classification of the fluids and geological formations traversed by wells PV12, PV13, and PV14, located in the Pico Vermelho sector of the Ribeira Grande geothermal field, as a geothermal resource, as well as their formal recognition as production wells.

This decision is based on a technical report that confirmed the suitability of these wells in terms of temperature, permeability and productivity, ensuring the necessary conditions for the sustainable exploitation of geothermal resources.

It should be noted that the sustainable use of these resources is a strategic vector of the regional energy policy, contributing to the energy transition, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and enhancing the value of regional endogenous resources.

This decision reinforces the Region's commitment to sustainable development and autonomy in the management of its natural resources, while also aligning with European energy transition and environmental sustainability goals.

The exploitation of Ribeira Grande's geothermal resources is licensed to the company EDA Renováveis, S.A.

8. Approve the Resolution authorising the signing of a cooperation-investment agreement between the Regional Government and the Soares de Sousa Home, providing for a contribution of up to a maximum amount of €1,680,654.40 (one million, six hundred eighty thousand, six hundred fifty-four Euros and forty cents), intended to secure the necessary funding for the Renovation Works to convert Solar da Glória into a Residential Structure for Elderly People (ERPI), run by the Luís Soares de Sousa Home, on the island of São Miguel.

9. Approve the Resolution creating the Mission Structure for Monitoring the Implementation of the Azores RRP.

The creation of this structure aims to fulfil the Regional Government's goals of leveraging and optimising the funds allocated under the RRP-Azores, ensuring its success and positive impacts on the Azorean society and economy.

10. Approve the Resolution approving the Incentive Programme for Attracting New Air Routes, applicable to the implementation of new regular commercial air transport routes at Lajes Civil Airport.

The exemption or reduction of traffic fees (passenger fees) can be a relevant stimulus for the implementation and consolidation of new air routes, strengthening the external connectivity of Terceira Island, promoting mobility, regional cohesion and the economic competitiveness of the territory.

In this context, and with a view to attracting and maintaining new regular passenger air transport routes to and from Lajes Civil Airport, it is important to establish a specific incentive programme based on the phased application of percentage reductions in passenger fees, in accordance with objective eligibility and operating conditions.

11. Approve the Resolution approving the Azores Drought and Water Scarcity Management Plan, a non-sectoral planning instrument, and establish the Azores Regional Commission for Drought and Water Scarcity Management.

The Azores Drought and Water Scarcity Management Plan covers the entire archipelago and analyses the different sectors that use water — domestic, agricultural/livestock, trade/services, industrial, social, public/administrative, tourism, and energy.

The management unit corresponds to the entities that manage public water supply and agricultural water supply services.