BRASILIA – The general director of the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel), Sandoval Feitosa, said that the agency should propose, in the first half of 2025, solutions for generation cuts, known as curtailment.
Feitosa believes that the matter should be reversed before the next “wind harvest”, the period between July and September when there are the best conditions for wind generation.
The general director understands that there should be no remuneration for generators when there is no consumption and that there cannot be an excess injection of energy into the networks.
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No cost to the consumer
“It is important that companies and thematic associations understand that Aneel is making its greatest efforts. What we absolutely cannot do is look for the easiest solution, which is to simply charge this cost to the electricity consumer,” he said.
Feitosa met with the governors of Rio Grande do Norte, Fátima Bezerra (PT), and Ceará, Elmano de Freitas (PT). Both asked for solutions to the curtailmentas there are impacts on the revenues of companies located in these states.
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After conversations with the National System Operator (ONS), there was a reduction in cuts, but, according to sector agents, the problem persists. The general director remembers that the cuts began after the blackout in August 2023.
2023 event
“We also have to remember that an event occurred in 2023 that left the operation of the system in some way more vulnerable from the operator’s perspective, which reduced the dispatch capacity of renewables in that region,” he stated.
The risk consultancy Moody’s Ratings pointed out in a presentation to Aneel that generation cuts are an important challenge for regulation.
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Moody’s sees risks to generators and points out that a solution needs to be found, but the consultancy understands that contracts can be improved.
“A very positive point is the evolution of the next distribution contracts with a better allocation between costs and between the different participants to mitigate these risks in new contracts at the time of renewal”, said the director of Moody’s Ratings, Cristiane Spercel.
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Funding cuts
Although Aneel is facing difficulties due to funding cuts, Feitosa guarantees that the work continues as much as possible.
He recalled that there are budget problems to be resolved, such as cuts in call center from Aneel, in monitoring social networks and georeferencing systems.
Feitosa said that the agency is willing to work in line with the federal government. The general director pointed out convergences with the government’s interests, such as allowing the use of the Itaipu Binacional bonus for discounts on the electricity bill.
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“In the end, Aneel’s decision served the government in a broad sense, because the decision we made to take the bonus to 2025, in January, has an impact on the fiscal framework,” he said.
The Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira (PSD), made statements in recent months criticizing the agency’s performance and accusing the directors of boycotting issues of interest to the Executive Branch.
The general director once again defended the authority’s actions against criticism. “The agency’s willingness is to work for the Brazilian State. And we have the broad, total and unrestricted willingness to work in total harmony with the current government and those to come”, he stated.
