Mega solar plant Sophia:
say no again

Smaller on paper — but still a mega-plant

After the unfavourable opinion, the developer (Lightsource bp; in the consultation, “Coloursflow – Unipessoal, Lda.”) submitted a reformulated project. That new version is what the Portuguese Environment Agency has opened for consultation — and what we say now counts towards the final decision, the Environmental Impact Declaration (DIA).

Source: Non-Technical Summary of the reformulated project (APA, EIA procedure no. 3800). Smaller on paper — but 1,177 fenced hectares is still more than 1,600 football pitches.

• Still gigantic573 MWp and 1,177 fenced hectares in 22 blocks — more than 1,600 football pitches — in the municipalities of Idanha-a-Nova and Penamacor, with a battery storage system (BESS) and a substation.
• Fundão is still on the routeThe panels have left the municipality of Fundão, but a 400 kV very-high-voltage line carries the power to the Fundão substation. Parishes covered, according to participa.pt: Alcaide, Fatela, Capinha, Três Povos, Enxames, Vale de Prazeres e Mata da Rainha, the Fundão parish union, Penamacor, Pedrógão de São Pedro e Bemposta, Aldeia de Santa Margarida and Proença-a-Velha.
• Already rejected onceThe Assessment Commission gave an unfavourable opinion on the original project (867 MWp, 1,737 fenced ha): impacts “of great magnitude and, in several cases, permanent and irreversible” on the landscape, soils, spatial planning and the socio-economy.
• 12,693 voices againstThe first consultation (October–November 2025) drew 12,693 submissions — the most participated public consultation ever in Portugal. Now we have until 21 October to show the opposition hasn’t changed — every new submission counts.

Official documents: Non-Technical Summary of the reformulated project (PDF, PT) · Article 16 report (PDF, PT) · EIA procedure no. 3800.

Step by step

🎬 Prefer to watch? This video shows how to submit your objection. It was made for the first consultation — the process on participa.pt is the same.

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STOP SOPHIA - Como Discordar contra o Projecto SophiaJusticaClimática · 05.11.2025

1. Create an account on participa.pt. In the top right corner, click “Registo” → choose the “Individual” type → fill in name, email and a password (minimum 12 characters) and click “Registar”.
2. Activate the account. Go to your email, open the message from Participa and click the activation link.
3. Log in. Back on participa.pt, click “Entrar” (you can also log in with the Chave Móvel Digital).
4. Open the consultation. Click here to open the Sophia consultation and press the “Participar” button.
5. Write the contribution. Paste your text — generate your unique contribution with the button below. Each person can only submit one, and a different text from each person counts far more than identical copies.
   Choose topics for your contribution (optional)

   Pick the concerns that matter most to you (optional) and the contribution will focus on them. If you choose none, it stays general.

   Still gigantic573 MWp and 1,177 fenced ha — reformulating doesn’t change the industrial scale. Already rejected onceThe Assessment Commission gave an unfavourable opinion — permanent, irreversible impacts. 400 kV lineA very-high-voltage line crosses Fundão to the substation. LandscapeIndustrialises the rural landscape of the Beira Baixa. Tourism and heritageHistoric villages like Monsanto and the Naturtejo UNESCO Geopark lose their setting. Habitats and speciesThreatened species and habitats, close to the Tejo Internacional Natural Park. FarmlandTakes up farmland and pasture and weakens the rural economy. Soil and waterSoil erosion; streams, springs and aquifers affected. Fire and batteriesA plant with battery storage (BESS) in high wildfire-risk land. Homes and villagesClose to villages — and house prices fall. Profits leaveThe profits go to a multinational; the burdens stay here. Cumulative impactAdds to the Beira solar plant and the PSZAER acceleration zones. People already said no12,693 submissions in the first consultation — the most ever. Too little timeOnly 13 days (10 working days) to analyse a reformulated project. Alternatives ignoredRooftops, already built-up and degraded land, self-consumption.
   Your contribution — unique

   Press “Generate” to create a unique, original contribution (written by AI from the facts on this page). Every objection comes out different — and counts for more.

   ✨ Generate my contribution Copy text
6. Choose “Discordância” (disagreement). In the “A minha participação” area, paste your contribution into the comment box and, in the “Classificador” (classification) menu — the blue bar at the top of the box — select “Discordância” to make clear you object.
7. Make it public and submit. Tick the option that authorises the publication of the contribution in the final report and click “Submeter”. ✅ Done.
8. Share this page. Send it to everyone you know in the Beira Baixa — the more objections, the more weight the no carries.
   Facebook WhatsApp Telegram Copy link

Watch, comment and share

Videos and posts from the people fighting Sophia. A like, a comment or a share makes the algorithm show them to more people — one of the most useful things you can do in seconds.

🎬 Videos about Sophia

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Castelo Branco: População contra a Central Solar SophiaBeira Baixa TV · 11.11.2025

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Salvem a Beira Baixa Protest 2026 📢 Stop Mega Solar Farms (Lisbon March)Portugal Walking Tour · 31.01.2026

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Pensar Portugal - O Projeto Sophia e os desafios das grandes centrais fotovoltaicasConta Lá · 23.01.2026

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Lightsource BP promete alterar o projeto da megacentral solar Sophia após onda de descontentamentoi New(s) Portugal · 13.01.2026

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Drag and compare: today vs. tomorrow

On the left, the Marateca reservoir (Castelo Branco) as it is today. On the right, the impact simulation with the plants the acceleration zones allow. Drag the handle across the image and compare.

Today Tomorrow?

Right-hand image: impact simulation created by the campaign — not a real photograph.

More campaign images — click to open full size and share:

Simulation: solar fields on the mountainside.

Today vs. tomorrow — simulation seen from the stone-cross viewpoint, with plants on the hillside.

Project land (green) and excluded land near Lardosa — REN study area.

Today vs. tomorrow — campaign share image.

Campaign satire: “Pinhal Sustentável 5.0” — the pine forest replaced by solar panels.

Read the official documents

All the consultation documents, in order of publication, hosted here for easy reading — each with a short summary. The numbers and quotes on this page come from them.

📖 Read the documents — summarised and translated, section by section →