Vivo reached an agreement with Elera Renováveis to consume 20% of the production of the Janaúba Solar Complex, installed in Minas Gerais. The telecommunications giant became a partner in the venture, in a modality known as self-production of electrical energy.
The company will own four plants totaling 237 megawatts-peak (MWp), enough energy to supply more than 200 Vivo consumer units at medium voltage.
With 112 million fixed and mobile accesses, Vivo uses electricity as an essential input in the provision of services, with an average consumption of 1.800 GWh hour/year. Entering self-production reduces dependence on purchasing energy on the free market and makes the company less susceptible to variations in the sector. Around 76% of the corporation's energy consumption comes from the free market.
Self-production has grown in Brazil, as energy becomes cheaper as there is an exemption from paying a series of sectoral charges that increase the cost of electricity.
“Medium voltage self-production consolidates our strategy focused on sustainable development and best ESG practices, which includes the use of renewable energy and the implementation of distributed generation plants, which already total 62 units, from solar, hydro and biogas sources, in operation throughout the country”, said Vivo’s Director of Assets, Logistics and Purchasing, Caio Guimarães, in a statement.
Considered one of the largest solar complexes in Latin America, the Janaúba Solar Complex is operated by Elera Renováveis, a company belonging to the Canadian Brookfield group. The plant has an installed capacity of 1,2 gigawatts-peak (GWp) and has 20 parks in an area equivalent to 4.300 football fields. In total, 2,2 million solar panels were installed and Vivo now owns 440 panels.
According to Elera's Vice President of Commercial and New Business, the partnership with Vivo reinforces the company's commitment to the energy transition agenda.
“The construction of the largest solar complex in the Americas is a historic milestone for Brazil and for our company. The complex that came into operation this year prevents the emission of more than 740 thousand tons of CO2 per year, and helps our customers to achieve their decarbonization goals in a competitive way. Long-lasting partnerships like Vivo's are an example of how energy consumers can become self-producers”, he also said in a note.
Since 2015, Vivo said it has maintained environmental goals aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In November 2018, it became the first company in the sector with energy 100% from renewable sources, both due to the distributed generation project, at low voltage, and through energy obtained on the free market.
The remainder of the company's consumption from the regulated market is compensated with I-RECs (International Renewable Energy Certificates), from wind sources.
According to Vivo, the use of renewable energy contributed to an 88% reduction in its direct CO2 emissions in the period between 2015 and 2022, and enabled the company to make important progress in neutralizing its emissions.
The company is carbon neutral in direct emissions. As part of the Telefônica group, it aims to achieve net zero emissions by 2040, considering its entire value chain.
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