Rodrigo Costa

Rodrigo Costa is the CEO and chairman of the board of directors for Portugal’s largest energy infrastructure company, Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN), where he has overseen a historic transition to renewable resources. Costa brought with him decades of experience as an executive—including 15 years with Microsoft—before he took the reins at REN in 2015 and helped the country become a European leader in clean energy.

Portugal has steadily decreased its reliance on carbon over the past decade, a trend punctuated by significant milestones in the past couple of years. With Costa at the helm, REN phased out coal production nearly a decade ahead of schedule in 2021 as it closed its last coal-fired power plant. During a record six-day stretch in the fall of 2023, Portugal’s renewable energy production exceeded the country’s electricity demand—allowing Portugal to export excess clean energy to Spain.

And the milestones haven’t stopped there. This January, wind power production reached an all-time high in Portugal, and in less than nine months in 2024 solar power exceeded its total recorded production from 2023. In April of this year, the country generated 95% of its electricity from renewable resources, with hydropower, wind, and solar each taking on an increased share of the power supply. And through September, REN reported 73% of the country’s 2024 electricity had been produced by renewable sources.