The Agency cites failure to comply with the emergency plan; the company claims that the contract is respected
This was reported by the National Electricity Agency (Aneel). this Monday 21st, that a summons was sent to Enel SP for “recurrence of unsatisfactory service to consumers in emergency situations”. The subpoena starts the process for the subsequent evaluation of the proposed expiration of the concession.
The October 11 storm left more than 3 million consumer units without electricity. Aneel cites the failure to comply with the emergency plan agreed by the distributor with the national regulator and the Public Services Regulatory Agency of the State of São Paulo (Arsesp).
“The company’s subpoena is part of a report of failures and transgressions, which initiates the process of assessing the expiry recommendation which will be assessed by the Aneel Board of Directors and then forwarded to the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) “, the agency mentions in a statement.
Next Monday, the 28th, the process will be distributed for reporting in the weekly public session. The distributor has 15 days from receipt of the deadline to submit his declaration.
“The Aneel Board of Directors will evaluate the elements brought by the distributor in its statement, after which it will decide whether it is appropriate to recommend the expiration of the concession to the MME,” reads the note.
Enel justifies the frequent interruptions of energy services in Sao Paulo in recent years with climate change. “Today in Brazil we have energy in every home thanks to the overhead network method (electrical wiring via poles). But this aerial network is more sensitive to atmospheric events”, declared the president of Enel San Paolo, Guilherme Lencastre, on Thursday 17th.
Lencastre also said that São Paulo’s electricity grid is old, with installation points that are more than 100 years old and require long-term investments to modernize. In the city of São Paulo, Enel has 43 thousand kilometers of distribution network throughout the concession area, of which 40 thousand kilometers are overhead and 2,600 kilometers are underground.
On Thursday, the president of the São Paulo dealership also said that the concession contract is ongoing, including clauses determining factors that, if not respected, could lead to its expiration.
Power outages have already been reported in the center of Sao Paulo in recent months. As well as in the eastern and northern regions of the capital. In November 2023, part of the population suffered a blackout which affected 2.2 million properties.
Millionaire fines
In recent years, the concessionaire has already received sanctions from Aneel, Procon and Senacon, totaling almost R$400 million in fines, but the Court has suspended the payment of most of the amount. In Aneel alone, the company has accumulated eight sanctions since 2018, amounting to fines of more than R$320.8 million. The highest were suspended in court and paid less than 20% of the fines.
The reasons for the sanctions imposed by Aneel include, among others, “quality of supply”, “non-compliance with determinations” and “quality of customer service”.
In recent days, all political groups have risen against the company, pushing for an end to the awarding of the Enel contract. The company has become a target for Mayor Ricardo Nunes (MDB) and his opponent in this election, Guilherme Boulos (PSOL).
Criticism also came from the governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republican), and from the Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira. The main complaint is because Enel, in recent years, has reduced its staff and, more recently, cut investments. Therefore it would not be able to provide a minimally acceptable service.
What is Enel’s track record in other cities and countries?
The electricity supply crisis in Sao Paulo is not the first that has seen Enel at the center of the issue. The company already had a history of problems in Goiás, and records bankruptcies and actions brought by the Public Prosecutor in the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Ceará. The dealer also faces questions in branches outside the country, as in the case of the company’s branch operating in Chile.
In Goiasafter various blackouts that caused losses for rural producers and a lack of assistance to the population, the company was practically “expelled” by the state government, which mobilized the Federal Public Ministry, the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the ‘Aneel to close the plant the company’s activity on the soil of Goiás.
Node Riverthe State Prosecutor’s Office has already initiated actions against the company due to recurring supply problems in at least five cities: Niterói, Petrópolis, Paraty, Duas Barras and Resende. There are blackouts, delays in restoring service and lack of deadlines.
Node CearáThe State Legislative Assembly (Alece) and the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP-CE) have taken measures against Enel since 2019 due to blackouts that have damaged trade, tourism and the healthcare sector. The facts are described in Enel’s CPI report, published in May this year. The parliamentarians ask for the contract to expire.
Node ChileIn August, President Gabriel Boric ordered his team to review Enel’s concession after a major blackout. At the time, Boric had raised his tone against Enel and stated that the company’s behavior was “unacceptable”.
Source: Terra
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