The Brazilian government has presented a proposal to reform the electricity sector that promises to bring significant changes to consumers and companies. The bill, which was sent to the Civil House by the Ministry of Mines and Energy, addresses three main points: market opening, new tariff modalities and tariff justice.
Market opening is one of the most relevant aspects of reform. Currently, consumers are required to hire energy from specific distributors in their regions. With the proposed change, there will be freedom of choice for trade and industry from March 2027, and for small consumers and homes from March 2028.
New tariff options
The project also provides for the implementation of new modalities of tariffs. Among the options is one, which would allow consumers to save money by performing high energy consumption activities at less demand. In addition, the introduction of a prepaid fare modality is being considered, similar to what already exists in cell phone.
A controversial point of the reform is the proposal of “tariff justice”. This measure of people, offering zero fare to those who consume up to 80 kWh a month and a significant discount for consumption of up to 120 kWh per month.
No WW This Friday (18), Luiz Barroso, CEO of PSR consultancy and specialist in the electricity sector, evaluates the proposal as a “good renovation”. According to him, “it is not a broad renovation that will change the electric sector upside down, but has very important elements that the sector itself has been discussing for many years.”
Barroso points out that the main axis of the reform is centered on allowing all consumers in Brazil to freely choose their electricity supplier, similar to what is already happening in cellular telephony.
Although it is not a complete revolution in the sector, the proposed reform promises to bring significant improvements, especially with regard to the freedom of consumer choice and the possibility of tariffs best suited to different needs and consumer profiles.
