The energy supply crisis in São Paulo has relaunched the debate on the concentration of control of electricity distribution concessions in the hands of the federal government, a debate animated by the São Paulo city hall for at least two years. At the center is a bill born from direct articulations between Mayor Ricardo Nunes (MDB) and Brasilia and which seeks to change the current logic of inspection and renewal of these contracts.
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The problem took on a new dimension after the passage of an extratropical cyclone, which caused gusts approaching 100 km/h, which destroyed the electricity network and left more than two million consumers without electricity. A week later, there were still unclear addresses in the capital. Along with the demand for an immediate solution to the crisis, Nunes and Governor Tarcísio de Freitas intensified political pressure on the Planalto Palace.
After determination by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the two men met with Alexandre Silveira to align a common strategy and request that the regulatory agency begin the analysis of the loss of the concession. The movement, however, in dialogue with a broader agenda, began years before the most recent crisis.
This agenda began to take shape in 2023, after the successive cuts that hit the capital and the metropolitan region. City Hall’s assessment was that, despite being directly affected by service failures, the municipal administration had little room for action, as it is not part of the central legal relationship of federal concessions.
In April 2024, Nunes personally presented to the then President of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira, a proposal to modify the legislation, defending a greater role for municipalities in this sector. From this articulation was born a project presented by deputy Baleia Rossi (MDB-SP), which proposes to redistribute the skills currently concentrated in the Union.
“The idea came from Mayor Ricardo Nunes, given the problems we had in November because of the terrible service provided by Enel that left millions of people without electricity. We presented it in April, because it was already something unsustainable. Mayors must have more power to act, because they end up unfairly accused of not acting. We managed to approve it thanks to the help of leader Isnaldo and President Arthur Lira, which was very sensitive,” Baleia Rossi said in October 2024.
The text, approved in the House and tabled in the Senate, provides that town halls and the Federal District will directly monitor the execution of energy distribution contracts in their territory, with the power to carry out inspections and report non-compliance.
In addition, it establishes that local entities are formally consulted before tenders, extensions, terminations or redefinitions of quality objectives, with the requirement for express expression on the terms that affect their cities.
Today, inspection of the electricity sector is the responsibility of Aneel, which signs agreements with state regulatory agencies to expand the scope of inspections. In São Paulo, this function is shared with Arsesp.
“In recent times, there have been several examples of serious problems in the provision of electricity services carried out indirectly due to concessions and authorizations. The power outage that affected 15 of the 16 municipalities of Amapá in August 2023, in addition to 20 other states and the Federal District, was widely known. of services”, indicates the justification of the project.
Another important point of the proposal is the provision according to which municipalities can influence the modeling of contracts, presenting specific conditions linked to local reality, and even oppose the renewal of concessions deemed unsatisfactory.
During a session in the Chamber, the project’s rapporteur, MP Cleber Verde (MDB-MA), argued that municipalities “have better conditions to assess the impacts of services on their territory”. He also cited the 2023 power outages in São Paulo, for which Enel was responsible, and in Amapá to argue for reform of the current system.
The project advanced in Congress due to the sequence of power cuts recorded between the end of 2023 and 2024 and ended up being approved by the Chamber of Deputies in the last quarter of that year. Since then, the mayor’s strategy has been to focus efforts in the Senate to unblock the vote and turn the proposal into law.
With the current crisis, defending the expiration of the São Paulo distributor’s contract emerged as Nunes’ main line of action, arguing Enel’s repeated failures and inability to react in critical situations. In the House, despite the demands for federal intervention in Enel and the harsh speech against the concessionaire, Baleia Rossi has not publicly mentioned, in interviews about the current crisis, the bill that he himself presented and which remains without progress in the Senate.
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