The Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira, admitted the possibility of financially compensating generators for the effects of curtailment, but only when the responsibility falls on the government, for example, when there is a failure in planning for the expansion of the transmission system.
“This is a topic that is being discussed within a working group together with the ANEEL"It's a problem we believe must be resolved. In principle, where curtailment exists due to a lack of structure and planning by the government, there is room to discuss the possibility of compensating companies. Where it is due to a lack of demand, it is the investor's risk," the minister stated during the concession renewal ceremony for the distributor Neoenergia Pernambuco, last Tuesday (23).
According to the regulation of ANEEL (National Electric Energy Agency), generation cuts are classified into three categories:
- Energy Ratio Cuts (ENE): occur when there is an excess of supply in relation to consumption;
- Electrical Reason Cuts (REL): caused by the unavailability of transmission lines, whether due to failures, maintenance or lack of planning;
- Reliability Ratio Cuts (CNF): carried out when, even with the network available, there is a risk of undesirable system behavior due to generation flow.
In practice, most outages are due to energy or reliability reasons, which significantly limits the amounts that could be reimbursed to generators.
Um study by Volt Robotics, released this week, pointed out that between January and August 2025, 17,6% of the energy that could be produced by wind and solar plants was “cut” by the ONS (National System Operator).
The curtailment generated losses of R$3,2 billion during the period. Since October 2021, when the ONS began publishing this data, accumulated losses have reached R$6 billion.
Renewal of concessions
The Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) confirmed the renewal of Neoenergia Pernambuco's concession, following its fulfillment of the government's technical requirements. Between 2025 and 2029, the company is expected to invest R$6,1 billion in network expansion and modernization, asset renewal, and combating non-technical losses.
Silveira highlighted that, three years ago, there were two possible paths: create instability in the distribution sector, leaving the future of 19 distributors open, or give predictability to the market.
The government opted to waive the concession and increase investments in the next tariff cycle. As a result, planned investments in Pernambuco increased by 50%, from R$4 billion to R$6,1 billion.
According to him, the expectation is that more than R$120 billion will be invested in the distribution sector by 2027. "This is the largest round of energy distribution renewal in Brazil's history. There are 19 distributors in 15 states, impacting the lives of 134 million people."
Resumption of the nuclear industry
The minister also reported that, at the next meeting of the CNPE (National Energy Policy Council), scheduled for October 1st, the situation of the nuclear industry and the Angra 3 project will be discussed.
A supporter of the agenda, Silveira believes that small nuclear reactors (SMRs) can replace the use of diesel in isolated systems and meet the demand of the electro-intensive industry.
"This will be crucial for Brazil to continue leading the global energy transition. We will reshape the nuclear sector. I've been talking with President Lula, Minister Esther Dweck (Management and Innovation), and Minister Fernando Haddad (Finance). There's a great idea that will be presented at the CNPE. I hope that in the next five years we will deliver a robust, clean, and safe nuclear sector that contributes to decarbonizing Brazil," he concluded.
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An answer
It was predictable that this issue was not on the agenda because it was a technical problem, but rather the whining of people wanting easy money.
It was a lot of talk for something with a conveniently not-so-complex technical solution.