Economic Dreams Turn Into Political Nightmare for Portugal
An investigation into how projects were approved led to the shock resignation of the prime minister. An election set for March could have a messy outcome.
The data center being built by Start Campus in Sines, Portugal, on Dec. 5.
Photographer: Joao Lima/BloombergA truck sloshes through the mud at the busy building site on the coast south of Lisbon. The towers of a decommissioned power plant loom over the area, while the silhouette of Portugal’s only oil refinery is visible in the distance along with the cranes of the deepwater port.
Under construction is a data center powered by clean energy that promises to be one of the biggest in Europe and part of the country’s plan to bring its economy more up to date. Yet the project in the town of Sines is also at the heart of a scandal that shocked the nation and paved the way for an election at an awkward time for Europe.