Eneva was the highlight in the auction of gas-fired thermal plants, in the capacity reserve modality, which took place this Friday (30). The auction, which meets the requirement for contracting gas-fired plants provided for in the Eletrobras privatization law, was unable to negotiate even half of the energy offered.
In total, 754 MW (megawatts) were closed for the North region, 75% of the supply. No bids were made for the Northeast region.
The ceiling price of R$ 444 per MWh (megawatt-hour) prevailed, with no discount. The planned investments total R$ 4.1 billion.
Eneva won with the Azulão 2 and 4 plants, which will cover the supply of just over half of the energy contracted for the North, 590.9 MW.
GPE (Global Participation in Energy) made a smaller offer, of 162.9 MW, with the Manaus 1 thermoelectric plant.
A total of 2 GW (gigawatts) of gas-fired thermoelectric power plants were offered in the auction, of which 1 GW in metropolitan areas of the North region, with delivery from December 2026, and another 1 GW of projects in the Northeast, 700 MW in Piauí and 300 MW in Maranhão, which should be generating energy as of December 2027. The contracts are for 15 years.
The 2 GW of this Friday’s event are part of a total of 8 GW in gas projects that need to be installed. The requirement was inserted by the parliamentarians in the MP (provisional measure) of privatization of Eletrobras during the processing of the text. As they have nothing to do with privatization, the gas-fired thermal expansion project became known as Eletrobras’s jabuti.
The use of gas in the expansion of electricity generation is not consensual. Gas already accounts for 25% of energy generation in Brazil, but most experts argue that it is not an input for the energy transition in a country where hydro production predominates and has high potential for the advancement of other renewable sources. The moment would be for investments in solar and wind energy, cleaner and cheaper. Others argue that these plants can guarantee supply in periods of climatic instability.
Opposition is even greater to the thermal plants required by the Eletrobras privatization law. Specialists question the lack of technical rationality, as they must necessarily be installed where there is no gas or large consumer market, which requires investment in infrastructure for transporting the input and transmission of energy.
The frustration in the result reinforces the opposition to these plants. The National Front of Energy Consumers, for example, has among its goals to convince the new wave of parliamentarians and review the Eletrobras law to remove the obligation to build other plants.
On Tuesday (26), the Instituto Internacional Arayara filed a civil suit in the Federal Court in Brasília in an attempt to suspend the auction. The entity alleges in the lawsuit that the requirement of 8 GW of gas-fired power plants in the Eletrobras privatization law is unconstitutional, and that there is case law in this regard. It also questions the financial and environmental costs of the plants.
A silent legal battle was fought in the capital’s court. The PGR (Attorney General’s Office) defended the holding of the event. Aneel (National Electric Energy Agency) and Eneva also activated their legal departments.
The Court did not manifest itself until the publication of this text.
ENEVA LIVED A TURNOVER IN BUSINESS
Eneva is Brazil’s largest private operator of onshore natural gas — on shore, as the industry’s jargon calls it. It operates with 11 natural gas fields in the Parnaíba (MA) and Amazonas (AM) basins. Its concession area in these states exceeds 60 thousand square kilometers.
It has gas plants in Maranhão, Ceará and Roraima. At the same time, it operates in the renewable energy segment. Among its projects is the Parque Solar Futura, in Juazeiro (BA).
Its generation park adds up to 5.6 GW of installed capacity and projects under construction.
Former MPX, an energy company created by businessman Eike Batista, Eneva now has financial investors among its shareholders. Lanx Capital (18.28%) and BTG (17.21%) are the main ones, but there is also participation from Dynamo Administração (5%), Atmos Capital (4.73%), Vanguard Group (2.75%), CSHG Asset (2.20%), BlackRock (1.62%), among others.
After changes in shareholders and managers, as well as financial mishaps, which include a request for recovery, Eneva got back on its feet. It ended 2021 with a profit of BRL 1.1 billion.
Stocks rise on the stock market after auction
Shortly after the auction, the company’s common shares (ENEV3) rose 1.73% on B3, the Brazilian stock exchange, just above the Ibovespa. At around 11:30 am, the company registered the fourth highest rise on the Exchange and also ranked third in terms of trading volume. In terms of volume, the company is ahead of stocks with reasonable liquidity, such as Magazine Luiza.
On Thursday (29), the shares were up 1.33%, the day the Ibovespa closed down 0.80%, pressured by the fear of recession that dominates the global stock market. It was the first high after four daily lows, which accumulated a 10% drop in the period. In the year, the shares rose 2.12%.
The company is on the Novo Mercado list and is part of its main index, the Ibovespa.
The analysts’ assessment is that with this new round of plants, Eneva reinforces the use of gas from its reserves in the North, which will reflect positively on the company’s shares.
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