The general director of the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel), Sandoval Feitosa, stated this Tuesday (24), during the agency’s ordinary meeting, that Enel São Paulo “lost credibility and legitimacy” to continue providing the electricity distribution service in the capital of São Paulo and presented a vote for the concessionary’s forfeiture.
The statement was made in the vote of the process that analyzes the possibility. Feitosa disagrees with the vote of the process rapporteur, Gentil Nogueira, who proposed not to extend the request for views, and that the recommendation for expiry be approved.
“I remind you that the company’s users and consumers have the right to the effective provision of the service, and can demand it from the Administration and the concessionaire”, said Feitosa, when arguing that the assessment of the case must consider the consumer’s right to continuity and quality of supply.
Enel serves around 8.5 million consumer units distributed in 24 cities in the São Paulo Metropolitan Region (RMSP), including the capital. The process being analyzed by Aneel may lead to the early termination of the concession contract, if serious non-compliance with contractual obligations is identified.
The discussion takes place amid a series of blackouts recorded in the last three years in the Metropolitan region of São Paulo, following heavy rains, which left millions of consumers without power for prolonged periods.
According to the general director, the reaction of the population served by Enel SP highlights dissatisfaction with the service provided. The energy supply crisis in the capital of São Paulo gained a political and institutional dimension.
In January, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Attorney General of the Union) and the MME (Ministry of Mines and Energy) act to investigate possible failures in the provision of electricity distribution services by the concessionaire.
The company argues that extreme weather events impact the electrical grid and that it has improved quality indicators.
The trial at Aneel has not yet been concluded. If expiry is declared, the contract may be terminated before the expected deadline, and the federal government must define a new arrangement to guarantee the continuity of the service, whether through intervention, new bidding or temporary designation of another operator.
