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Part of the expenses to help the energy supply in Amapá will be covered by all consumers in the country. The amount will be used for the emergency contracting of thermal power plants to restore service in the state, which has been without power since last week, after a fire at the Macapá substation. The incident caused the closure of the transmission line and the plants that supply the region.
The costs will be included in the electricity bill through the ESS (System Service Charge), which serves to maintain the stability of the electrical system. This account will be prorated between consumers served by distributors, such as residential ones, and those that operate in the so-called free market, such as industries.
The balance will depend on the amount of energy, the time that this activation will be necessary and the cost of the fuel that the plants will use.
The measure is provided for in the ordinance published by the Ministry of Mines and Energy last Friday (6). Faced with the public calamity in Amapá, the federal government endorsed Eletronorte, a subsidiary of Eletrobras, to act in restoring the service.
The ministry authorized the company to contract “quickly, exceptionally and temporarily” up to 150 MW for up to six months or when a satisfactory condition of service to the State is recognized.
According to the Password (Study Group of the Electricity Sector) at the UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro), Nivalde de Castro, the position is used as a “wild card” for when there is a need for emergency care.
“It is a correct measure, from the legal and energy point of view. The cost is very high, but it is shared by all consumers. The State has been without electricity for a long time, so this decision makes sense,” he said.
Until September, consumers had paid R $ 457.5 million in charges for system services. According to CCEE (Commercial Chamber of Electricity), the value is lower than that registered in the same period of last year, R $ 1,574 billion.
The reduction is due to the sharp drop in energy demand during the first months of the new coronavirus pandemic, which reduced the need for thermal power plants in operation in the country.
The Ministry of Mines and Energy has an emergency contract to fully supply the electricity supply in Amapá until next week. According to the folder, about 80% of the service has already been restored.
According to the ordinance, Eletronorte is authorized to immediately contract 40 MW of generation. Questioned by Radiodifusión Politica, the company did not report the quantity and conditions of the contracts that are being negotiated.
The TCU (Federal Court of Accounts) will determine if there was any omission by public authorities in the incident that led to the blackout in Amapá.
Minister Ana Arraes ordered the technical area of the court of accounts to investigate whether the government acted with the diligence that the case required. Ten days after the blackout, power has yet to be fully restored to the state.
In the representation, TCU raises doubts about the management of the concessionaire LMTE (Macapá power transmission lines).
This concession belonged to Isolux, which went bankrupt in Spain. Currently, the line is owned by Gemini Energy, a company that belongs to the investment funds Starboard and Perfin and which owns 85.04% of the line.
A 14.96% stake belongs to Sudam (Superintendency of Amazon Development), with whom the concessionaire had a debt that became equity.
“According to the transmission quality reports, the concessionaire has already been sanctioned with more than R $ 6 million in its portion of variable remuneration in the last five years, for quality deficiencies,” says TCU.
