Government will ‘squeeze every last drop’ from energy distributors for quality when renewing contracts, says minister

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Statement by Alexandre Silveira, Minister of Mines and Energy, comes in a context of pressure on distributors. Among them, Enel SP, which had its contract questioned by the government due to problems in providing the service. The Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira, stated this Wednesday (3) that the government will “squeeze every last drop” from energy distributors for quality when renewing contracts close to their expiration date — Enel SP’s is a from them. “I’m going to use this moment to squeeze out the last drop, all the possible drops or all the possible energy in the renewal process in favor of the quality of the distributors’ service,” he said in an interview with journalists. At the moment, the government is defining the criteria to renew for another 30 years the contracts of 20 distribution companies, which serve around 60% of the market. Enel is in Alerj’s sights to improve the quality of the service provided to consumers. The first concessions begin to expire in 2025, with EDP do Espírito Santo. The distributor has already requested renewal, but the government still needs to define the guidelines through a decree — with no date yet. According to the minister, there is a lack of technical studies by the department. Silveira’s statement comes in a context in which the government raises the possibility of canceling Enel’s contract. In this way, Silveira tries to pressure distributors to deliver a more adequate service without major failures. Areas covered by Enel in São Paulo suffered blackouts and power outages at the end of 2023 and also last month. This caused the provision of the service to be questioned. On Monday (1st), Silveira sent a letter to the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel) asking for the opening of an administrative proceeding against Enel SP, which serves the capital of São Paulo and the metropolitan region. In the document, the minister even mentions the possibility of canceling the contract with the company. This Wednesday (3), Silveira said that there is the possibility of the company readjusting itself. Enel SP’s contract expires in June 2028 and Enel Rio’s in December 2026. Another concession with problems, in Rio de Janeiro, Light’s contract expires in June 2026. “Enel, my statement to Aneel did nothing more than fulfill my duty as Minister of State to look at a distributor that has repeatedly caused problems for the state of São Paulo. That’s all, nothing more. Aneel now has the duty to fulfill its mission”, he declared.

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