Electric power is an essential resource in today’s society, and it is key to a nations social-economic growth. In Brazil, the main generation source is hydropower (rivers running water), which corresponds to 62% of the installed capacity in the country, it is followed by thermal generation (natural gas, coal, fossil fuels, biomass and nuclear) with 28%. The remaining comes from wind farms and from other countries.
With the exception of some isolated areas, mainly in the north region, the Brazilian electric grid is all interconnected. Energy management is done via the National Interconnected System (Sistema Interligado Nacional - SIN), a large transmission network more than 100 thousand kilometers long.
Generation
Generation is the industry sector responsible for producing electricity and delivering it to transport systems (transmission and distribution) so it can reach consumers. In Brazil, the generation sector is very diversified. According to data from 2014 from the National Agency for Electric Power (Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica - ANEEL), it was spread among 3,152 generation units.
Transmission
The transmission sector is the one that delivers large amounts of energy from the generation industry to its destination. Failure in a transmission line can blackout entire cities or even entire states. In Brazil this segment is made of 77 public utilities, responsible for the administration and operation of over one hundred thousand kilometers of transmission lines across the country. Unlike the generation sector, transmission and distribution of energy in Brazil are regulated by ANEEL, the national regulatory agency of the sector. With this, companies can’t set prices as they wish, they operate out of concession contracts that usually have mechanisms to periodically adjust and review tariffs, performed by the regulatory agency.
Distribution
The energy delivered by transmission lines finally reach distribution systems that, in turn, deliver it to medium and small consumers. There are also smaller generation units that inject the power they produce into the distribution system. In Brazil, this segment is made of 63 utilities, which are responsible for the administration and operation of lower voltage transmission lines. It is the distribution company that makes the electric energy reach homes, business and industries.
Source: ANEEL and ABRADEE