Hired by Omega Energia, the singer says that consumers will be able to choose a supplier like they choose a cell phone, and it will not be that way; in fact, the poorest may lose out
A video shared this Friday (7.Oct.2022) by the singer Ivete Sangalo in her profile on instagram in favor of the free electricity market can mislead the consumer. However, in the early evening of this Friday, at 19:46, the post was no longer available on feed by the artist – see the image below (the print on the left is late afternoon and the one on the right is early evening).
The video was sponsored by Omega Energya company that owns wind farms and small hydroelectric plants and also published the file on their social media profiles. It was not disclosed the value of this marketing operation or how much the singer received. Ivete says in the recording that the electricity bill is expensive. Then she asks: “What if we could choose the cheapest energy and who to buy from in the same way that we choose a cell phone operator or bank? It seems strange, but it already exists here in Brazil”.
Watch the video of Ivete sponsored by Omega Energia (2min15s):
Ivete’s statement is controversial. She mentions that there is a project being discussed “right now” and asks people to share their video: “Be part of this movement that can change the lives of millions of Brazilians”. In the jingle created for the campaign, the artist speaks “choose energy like you choose a bank, operator and cell phone”.
This is not fact. To change cell phone operator, just go into a store in a mall, buy a SIM card and install it on the device. In the case of an energy supplier switch, the negotiation is long and very difficult for an individual consumer. In the case of a building, it would be necessary for all the condominium members to validate, in a long negotiation. Unlike a cell phone with a prepaid chip, which just needs to be exchanged at a cost of a few reais, energy consumers will never have such ease as Ivete Sangalo stated in the advertisement paid for by Omega.
The project mentioned is the PL 414/2021 (intact – 191 KB). The proposal that gives consumers the right to choose from whom they will buy energy has obscure points and it is not clear exactly who will benefit. Reason: it may have an opposite effect to what Ivete says in the videoincrease the electricity bill of captive consumers (households and small businesses) and make energy cheaper for large consumers, who will have bargaining power.
The debate around the free market also requires a solution for the oldest power generation contracts. These are agreements from the past, paid for by the regulated market (who buys energy from the local distributor). For those who continue to buy from the distributor, the bill would increase as more consumers migrate to the free market. It is difficult to solve, as there will never be a migration from one (regulated) system to another at once. Obviously, the smallest consumers – precisely the poorest ones – are left for the end. During the transition, they are the ones who will pay the bill.
A study commissioned by the Ministry of Economy states that this overcontracting cost would be R$ 10 per MWh (megawatt-hour) if there is an apportionment of the overcontracting costs between free and captive consumers. If the cost is not shared, the average charge could reach R$37 per MWh.
According to the text of bill 414 of 2021, a charge must be created to bear these costs. The study by the PSR consultancy, contracted by the government, recommends gradually opening the market to all consumers from 2026. According to the consultancy, phasing could reduce the overcontracting charge by BRL 6 per MWh. Even so, it will be the poorest who will pay the most for this burden on the electricity bill.
According to the draft submitted for consultation by the Ministry of Mines and Energy, commercial and industrial low voltage consumers will be able to choose their energy supplier from 2026. Residential and rural consumers will have freedom of choice from 2028 onwards.
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