Brazil reports strong growth in free power market

Brazil’s electric power commercialization chamber (CCEE) concluded the migration of 8,936 new consumers to the free power market in January-May, Adriana Sambiase, CCEE's executive manager for registrations and contracts, told BNamericas. 

That figure is 21% higher than the migrations reported for the whole of last year. 

Of this total, more than 78% are represented at the CCEE by a retail trader, a company that represents smaller customers and facilitates the migration and contract management process.

In January this year, all high-voltage customers (known as group A) were allowed to migrate from the regulated market to the free market, where they can choose and negotiate with their own energy supplier. 

The government is studying the possibility of allowing free market access for low-voltage commercial and industrial units starting in 2026, and finally for residences starting in 2028.

The free power market currently represents approximately 37% of Brazil's total electricity consumption, and that percentage is expected to increase in the coming months, according to Sambiase. 

"We're working together with Aneel and we know that more than 23,700 customers have notified their distributors of their desire to migrate to the free market this year," she said. 

Of the 15 branches of economic activity monitored by the CCEE, the ones that have seen the biggest growth in migrations are those in commerce and services, due to the capillarity of these areas. 

"These are bakeries, supermarkets, pharmacies, offices, in short, consumers who see advantages in the free market such as greater power of choice, since they can select their own supplier and negotiate prices, and the possibility of having a more sustainable operation, with the purchase of renewable energy," explained Sambiase.

With an eye on the expansion of the free market, the CCEE is improving processes and creating more agile and automatable systems, reducing barriers to entry for consumers and facilitating the day-to-day operations of agents.

In talks with Aneel, the CCEE is advocating more flexible rules for smaller consumers, especially from the point of view of the documentation required to register new metering points and the technical requirements for meters. 

"The main objective is for consumers to be able to enter the free market without having to invest in new metering equipment or worry about technical issues," said Sambiase.

In terms of technology, the CCEE proposes that the exchange of information between agents in the sector should take place via a data integration platform that connects the agents' systems to its own without human intervention. 

"This is an innovation that will help us offer services such as sending metering data, portability between retailers, returning to the captive segment, among others, in a safe, fast and standardized way," said Sambiase.

The idea is that, after a period of market adaptation, all new consumers who migrate to the free environment will use this model.