Aneel informs Enel and discusses risk of loss of concession after power outage due to windstorm in SP

• Learn more: Fallen motorcycles, dismantled Santa Claus, widespread power outage: a windy afternoon in São Paulo
• The cause: Extratropical cyclone brings winds of up to 91 km/h to cities in São Paulo

In the document addressed to the CEO of the dealership, Guilherme Gomes Lencastre, the regulatory agency adopts a more severe tone. Aneel points out that repeated serious failures in service delivery violate contract terms and may lead to the recommendation of “concession expiration”, a technical term for the cancellation of the company’s contract with the government.

The letter highlights that as of 3 p.m. this Wednesday, Enel’s own system indicated 2,052,401 properties without electricity, which is equivalent to 31.81% of the entire concession area. Given the scale of the event, the regulator set a deadline of 5 calendar days for sending a detailed report.

By the end of Wednesday afternoon, at least 2.26 million homes in the metropolitan area were still without power. This number represents 26% of the energy distribution company’s total customers in Greater São Paulo. In the capital’s municipality alone, 1.5 million homes are without electricity.

Among the requirements, Aneel requires the presentation of the “Recomposition Curve”, a graph which must detail the peak of interruptions and the speed of recovery of service hour by hour. The agency also questions the effectiveness of the emergency plan, demanding proof of when the distributor mobilized its teams and whether the operational structure was compatible with the weather alerts issued a few days before.

Aneel also affirms that the event was not a surprise, since meteorological institutes and Civil Defense had already warned since the weekend about the formation of the cyclone and the possibility of damage to the electricity network.

The impact of the lack of light was felt more in the western region of the metropolis. The municipality of Pirapora do Bom Jesus saw its supply virtually disappear, with 87% of properties without electricity by early afternoon. The situation is also critical in Cotia, with 74% of layoffs, and in Vargem Grande, with 55%.

The massive outage is primarily attributed to physical damage to the overhead distribution network. Firefighters received more than 500 calls related to the storm, while the capital’s Civil Defense recorded 57 tree falls between Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning.

In a statement, Enel informed that its concession area continues to be affected by strong gusts this afternoon and that it is working to restore power to the affected areas.

“Due to the winds, the electricity network is hit in some places by objects and branches, which harms the supply, in addition to falling trees,” the note said. “At 10 a.m., the Mirante de Santana station of the National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet) recorded gusts approaching 80 km/h.”

Even though this Wednesday morning dawned without rain in the capital, the danger came by air. The state is under the influence of an extratropical cyclone formed in the South Atlantic. The phenomenon created a low pressure zone which, even on the high seas, generated a difference in atmospheric pressure capable of accelerating the winds towards the continent.

With the sky open and the incidence of solar radiation warming the ground, atmospheric turbulence intensified, bringing gusts from the highest layers towards the surface. The National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet) recorded winds of nearly 80 km/h at the Mirante de Santana station, in the northern zone. On the coast, the force was even stronger: Bertioga recorded gusts of 87.8 km/h and Santos, 83.3 km/h.