Brazil’s J6 Energia Renovável planning to invest US$320mn over 5 years

J6 Energia Renovável, part of the JMalucelli group, plans to invest 1.65bn reais (US$320mn) in energy generation projects in Brazil over the next five years.

The company's expansion plan includes the development of solar and hydroelectric plants, with both distributed generation (DG) and independent production, in the south, southeast, mid-west and northeast regions.

On April 24, the company will inaugurate three photovoltaic DG plants with a total installed capacity of 3MW in Trindade municipality, Goiás state.

The company's current development portfolio includes the Joazeiro solar and wind complexes in Bodó, Rio Grande do Norte state, with installed capacities of 719MW and 198MW, respectively, and the Belos Ventos solar and wind complexes in Macau, also in Rio Grande do Norte, at 522MW and 131MW, respectively. 

In addition to the hybrid parks, the development portfolio includes 62MW of small hydroelectric plants (SHPs) and 30MW of photovoltaic projects

"This plan includes what the company is willing to invest in and do. But it's clear that the country has to respond and provide opportunities," company president Fernanda Sawaia told BNamericas.  

"In the case of SHPs, the government needs to hold auctions with opportunities for these projects, so we can then make our calculations and analyze the conditions for entry into operation." 

With regard to hybrid parks, as they are projects with a large installed capacity, the idea is to find partners to get them off the ground. 

"Partnerships can take various forms. There’s no pre-established requirement," said Sawaia. 

Despite the conjuncture about low energy prices, the executive is optimistic about the feasibility of implementing the investment plan. 

"We believe in the country's growth, which will demand more energy," she said.  

The investments will be based on equity and partly financed by banks, for example.  

In the case of distributed generation, Sawaia said that J6's projects are in the "GD1" category, that is, they are exempt from charges for using the energy distribution system, which ensures they are more competitive.

According to the DG regulatory framework, GD1 projects that requested connection by January 2023 do not have to pay for the use of the distribution system until 2045, while GD2 projects gradually started paying in 2023.

J6's operational portfolio includes the Espora hydroelectric plant (32MW) and PCH Queixada (30MW) facilities in Goiás state, and the Belo Monte hydroelectric plant on the Xingu river in Pará state, with 28.1MW (capacity referring to the company's stake in the project). 

In distributed generation, it has the Limirim II, III and IV PV solar plants, with capacity of 3MW, in Goiás.