The Brazilian electricity regulator ANEEL has blocked the proposed sale of Renova Energia's Alto Sertao III wind power project to AES Tietê - subsidiary of US-based energy company AES Corp., considering that the companies failed to provide guarantees for the conclusion of the project and to show possible gains for the consumers.
The two companies had reached an agreement on the sale of the 743 MW project in late March 2019. The transaction includes the Phase A of the project (438 MW) for BRL350m (US$91m) and the Phase B (305 MW) for BRL90m (US$23m), along with an option to acquire a portfolio of up to 1.1 GW of wind projects under development for BRL76m (US$20m). In addition, AES Tietê would assume the related BRL 988m (US$255m) financial debt, mainly with the Brazilian development bank BNDES.
ANEEL's decision will affect the part of the wind power project that have already secured contracts to sell the energy, i.e. the Phase B; other parts without PPAs could still be sold, such as the Phase A of the project and the 1.1 GW project portfolio.