The Brazilian power company Cemig (Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais, controlled by the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais) will postpone the divestment of its stake in the 11.2 GW Belo Monte hydropower plant until 2019. Cemig has also resumed negotiations with a potential buyer for its interest in the Santo Antonio hydropower plant.
In June 2017, the company announced that it would divest US$2.7bn in an effort to cut its debt and in particular its stakes in the Norte Energia consortium, which operates Belo Monte. The total sale would include its 49% stake in gas distribution company Gasmig (acquired from Petrobras, estimated at BRL 1.2bn, US$350m), a 19% stake estimated at BRL 1.4bn (US$410m) in the electricity transmission company Taesa (four transmission concessions including 2,138 km of lines acquired from Abengoa in 2012), a 43% share in the power distributor Light (Rio de Janeiro, estimated at BRL 530m, US$155m) and also in the 11.2 GW Belo Monte and 3.55 GW Santo Antonio hydropower projects (12% stake in Norte Energia, the developer of Belo Monte, estimated at BRL 1.4bn (US$410m) and 18% stake in Santo Antonio estimated at BRL 1.3bn, US$379m).
Belo Monte is located on the Xingu river in the Para state (Brazil) and had a total operating capacity of 3.2 GW as of April 2017 (out of a total planned capacity of 11.2 GW).
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