Aneel clears Furnas to buy 40% in Enerpeixe

Brazil's electricity regulator Aneel has given the go-ahead for the Brazilian unit of Portuguese power company EDP to sell a 40% voting right stake in hydro concessionaire Enerpeixe to federal power company Furnas, Canal Energia reported. Enerpeixe will build the 452MW Peixe Angical hydroelectric project on the Tocantins river in the state of the same name in the country's center-west region. Construction stopped in 2002 for environmental reasons and the project is now expected to start up in December 2005. EDP Portugal will maintain control of the venture. Project costs are estimated at 1.3bn reais (US$450mn), of which 500mn reais will be disbursed by Eletrobras, Furnas and EDP, and the rest by national development bank BNDES and a pool of banks, Furnas owner Eletrobras said in October.