Brazil’s National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel) is seeking a decision from the Ministry of Mines and Energy on the future of Enel Rio, whose concession ends on December 9. The distributor serves about 3.1 million customer properties across 66 municipalities, and the ministry has yet to formally approve or reject an extension recommended by Aneel in August 2025.
In an official letter, the regulator noted that no decision had been made and asked whether it needed to take any further action. Aneel’s board approved a recommendation to renew the concession for another 30 years, but the final decision rests with the government and must be formalized by the ministry.
If the contract expires without renewal, electricity service is still expected to continue. A 2024 decree allows the government to appoint a company to provide temporary service, while concessions that are not renewed or have ended must be put up for tender. However, the arrangements for operating Enel Rio’s service area from December 10 have not been determined.
The process also involves scrutiny of service-quality indicators. Brazil’s Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) did not assess whether Enel Rio met the requirement for continuity of supply and instructed Aneel to complete and publish an audit of the duration and frequency of outages within 120 days. The court said the company met the financial, procedural and documentation requirements it examined, leaving the ministry to decide based on the available information.
Enel says Aneel completed and closed an inspection covering January 2022 through March 2023 without finding inconsistencies in the calculation of the indicators. The company made that statement in a results report released on October 28.
Enel Rio reported investing 1.4 billion reais in the first nine months of 2026, a 34.3% increase from the same period in 2025. Investment in the third quarter totaled 551.2 million reais, up 34.5%. The specific effect of the unresolved concession on the company’s access to credit and financing costs remains unclear, according to sources cited in the report.
The decree also provides for compensation for investments in assets that can be transferred to a successor operator if they have not yet been fully depreciated or amortized. Aneel is responsible for setting the amounts and conditions, and in the event of a new tender, the winning bidder would pay the former concessionaire.
Enel said it is waiting for the ministry to sign off on renewals for its Rio de Janeiro and Ceará concessions, adding that both distributors meet the requirements and indicators set out in the decree. The company also said its São Paulo distributor meets Aneel’s indicators and is awaiting the regulator’s position on its contract.
Carlos Faria, president of the National Association of Energy Consumers, said a decision is urgent because long-term investments need to be made and uncertainty could affect service. He also cautioned that changing distributors could be disruptive for customers.
Sources: CNN Brasil.