It is now necessary to solve the bases of the electricity sector so that the opening of the free hiring environment (ACL) to all consumers, including low voltage, occurs healthy in the coming years, defends the director of regulation and energy marketing of Spic Brazil, Carlos Longo.
“In order to happen this market opening, these foundation of security, reliability in supply, the question of curtailmentthey need to be very well oiled so that the market will open not only on paper, but in practice, ”says the executive.
The free market, in which the customer can choose the energy supplier, today is open in Brazil only for consumers of medium and high voltage. The government is debating the rules to extend this option to all consumers, including residentials. The expectation is that the total opening will occur until the end of the current decade.
Enhancement
According to the Spic Brazil executive, one of the points that can be improved before full liberalization is the risk analysis of the companies themselves, in order to increase the safety of negotiations.
From a regulatory point of view, the director believes that it would be important to establish more robust mechanisms to verify the past and future portfolio of traders, in order to capture any risks of these companies to meet contractual commitments.
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He points out that it is important for companies to take risks compatible with the equity they have.
In recent years, the Electricity Commercialization Chamber (CCEE) and the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel) have expanded safety measures in the market, after cases of traders who had difficulty meeting contracts due to price fluctuations.
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“We understand that the mechanisms that CCEE has already implemented can be improved to capture a longer horizon of traders negotiations,” says Longo.
Girdle
Another point of attention in the sector is the cuts of generation due to infrastructure bottlenecks, which have mainly affected the renewable plants of the northeast of the country.
In the long view, plants should be reimbursed by the cuts of generation that occur for electrical reasons, ie, by restrictions on network access, either for reasons of unavailability or reliability.
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“Because this is something that is impossible to put in investment decisions and planning, these cuts should be reimbursed,” he argues.
In recent months, with the cuts in the generation of plants, Spic had to buy energy to meet contracts.
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The scenario even affects discussions about the company’s expansion in the country. The company is part of the Chinese group Spic, present in 47 countries, with over 246 gigawatts (GW) of installed capacity worldwide.
Investment
“Chinese believe a lot in Brazil, have appetite for long -term investment. But surely, due to these cuts that occurred, investment decisions are being seen with much more care,” says Longo.
In Brazil, the company has 4 GW in the portfolio, with negotiations in the regulated environment and the free market.
At the moment, the company is building two wind projects in Rio Grande do Norte, which total 105.4 MW, and will go into operation in 2026, focusing on the negotiations at ACL.
Company’s strategy in the free environment is to maintain wholesale, even with the opening of the market for smaller customers.
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“We do not intend, for now, to operate in the retailer, because it is another business, another focus, with another company service profile, much more pulverized,” he explains.
“It’s a matter of strategy for each company, which makes more sense to focus at a certain moment,” he adds.
Liquidity increase
Even so, according to the executive, the opening of the free environment in 2024 to all high and medium voltage consumers increased the liquidity and volume of negotiations, which was positive for the entire segment.
Therefore, he considers that the total segment liberalization will make the market more dynamic and liquid.
The company’s main asset in Brazil is the São Simão hydroelectric dam, on the border between Minas Gerais and Goiás. About 30% of the energy generated by the plant has been sold in the free market since 2018, with the remaining negotiated by the registered quota regime in the regulated market.
Spic Brasil also operates the wind parks Millennium and Vale dos Ventos, in Paraíba and holds 70% participation in the Marangatu Solar Complexes (PI), Panati (CE) and Luiz Gonzaga (PE), as well as a portion of the thermoelectric GNA (Açu Natural Gas), in São João da Barra (RJ).
