Tarcísio says he will privatize first Emae, which ‘is easy’, and then Sabesp

Governor-elect Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans) said this Thursday (8) that he intends to sell Emae (Metropolitan Water and Energy Company) first and then privatize Sabesp.

The statement was made at an event held by Banco Itaú, alongside the governors of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema (Novo), and Rio Grande do Sul, Eduardo Leite (PSDB).

The event was marked by an emphatic defense of privatizations by Tarcísio.

“It’s interesting that there’s always this vision, of ‘they’re going to dispose of the people’s assets’. No, actually, it’s giving back to the people what belongs to the people. I wonder if we took that privatization money, invested part of it in infrastructure , to boost, to generate wealth, and a part in the fight against poverty”, he said.

Tarcísio listed a series of concession and privatization goals, but highlighted Sabesp. According to him, there are those who prefer to jointly privatize Sabesp and Emae, a view with which he disagrees.

“Let’s start with Emae, because it is a company that it makes no sense for the Government of São Paulo to have,” he said. “Let’s think simple, slice the gorilla as some people say. Is it easy to sell Emae? Okay. So sell Emae first, meanwhile we are working on what will be the great privatization of the state of São Paulo, which is Sabesp “, said.

Since winning the election, this was the clearest statement about the plan to privatize the company.

Sabesp is controlled by the Government of São Paulo, but with 49.7% of its shares traded on the stock exchange, both in São Paulo and in New York. It serves 375 municipalities and, in 2021, it made a profit of R$ 2.3 billion.

His bet is to follow the example adopted at Eletrobras, in which the government reduced its stake in the company, through the offering of shares, but maintained veto power in corporate matters, to prevent new partners from having great influence over its management, for through the so-called “golden share”.

Tarcísio also said that he intends to sell the Port of São Sebastião and mentioned partnerships in road and rail works.

Next year, the schedule is for the first half of next year to auction the Rodoanel Norte and the intercity train, which will connect São Paulo to Campinas.

He also mentioned new bids due to the end of the contract for the Castelo Branco highway and the unconferred stretch of Raposo Tavares, between Cotia and São Paulo.

The names announced by the governor-elect for his secretariat and his transition team indicate that he will focus on privatizations, as he did in the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government, expanding the privatizations seen in previous administrations.

The assistants include people who worked in the area of ​​concessions and privatizations with Tarcísio at the Ministry of Infrastructure and people close to the Minister of Economy, Paulo Guedes.

His fame as a privatizer earned Tarcísio the nickname “Thorcisio” among Bolsonaristas due to the force he used to hammer the auctions of public assets during his management.

Right from the start, Tarcísio will inherit 16 concession projects or PPPs (public-private partnerships) in progress, including the Rodoanel Norte, the intercity train, the Ibirapuera sports complex and the Petar park, in addition to concessions for highways and lines of the CPTM.