Bill on the privatization of Copel advances in the legislative assembly of Paraná

The Paraná government’s proposal to privatize Copel, making it a company with dispersed capital and no controlling shareholder, was approved by the Legislative Assembly of Paraná on Wednesday (23), in a first vote on the subject, according to press reports. of the legislative body.

The advance of the tariff occurs days after the State of Paraná revealed its plans to dispose of control of Copel in a model similar to that of Eletrobras, which led the shares of the electrical company from Paraná to skyrocket.

Bill 493/2022 needs to be voted on in the second discussion of the Paraná assembly. An extraordinary session for this was also held on Wednesday, but because it received amendments from the plenary, the text returned to the CCJ (Commission on Constitution and Justice) of the House.

The CCJ met to consider the amendments on Wednesday, but the vote was postponed after the request for a review by deputies Tadeu Veneri (PT) and Homero Marchese (Republicans), according to information from the Paraná legislature. The CCJ meets again this Thursday (24) to deliberate on the texts.

Of the five amendments received, three were tabled by the Opposition Leadership. One of them, for example, authorizes the State to dispose of Copel shares as long as at least 51% of the common shares are secured by the State.

In addition to the legislative assembly, the project also needs to be approved by the TCE (State Court of Auditors) of Paraná.

This week, Copel’s CEO did not risk predicting a deadline for the State to obtain the necessary approvals, but indicated that the process should be influenced by the renewal schedule of Copel’s main generation concession, the Foz do Areia hydroelectric plant.