Brazil's National Electricity Agency Sets 2026 Prices For Optimized Energy

Brazil's National Electricity Agency Sets 2026 Prices for Optimized Energy, Ancillary Services, and Difference Settlement, with Key Data Capped at R$1,611.04/MWh

 

The Brazilian National Electricity Agency (ANEEL), through Dispatch Order No. 3,850 issued on December 23, determined the 2026 optimized energy price standard at R$18.27 per megawatt-hour (MWh), the Itaipu hydroelectric power plant's optimized energy price at R$57.31 per MWh, and the ancillary services price at R$10.41 per MWh. It also set the minimum and maximum limits for the 2026 difference settlement price, with the minimum limit remaining at R$57.31 per MWh, the structural maximum limit at R$785.27 per MWh, and the hourly maximum limit at R$1,611.04 per MWh.

 

 

The operation and maintenance component of the optimized energy price and ancillary services price was adjusted based on the cumulative inflation index up to September 2025, resulting in a 5.17% increase. The other component of the optimized energy price depends on the updated reference price approved by Dispatch Order No. 3,642/2025-STR/ANEEL, which is 7% of the reference price and shows no significant change compared to the previous year. Therefore, the increase in the optimized energy price is very close to the cumulative inflation level during the period under discussion. The Itaipu hydroelectric power plant's optimized energy price decreased by 2.20% due to the increased proportion of energy consumed by Paraguay, resulting in a reduction in the amount ceded to Brazil. The change in the maximum limit of the difference settlement price corresponds to the cumulative inflation index up to November 2025, an increase of 4.46%. The minimum limit of R$57.31 per MWh corresponds to the higher of the optimized energy price and the Itaipu hydroelectric power plant's optimized energy price with bloopower.

 

The optimized energy price aims to cover the incremental operation and maintenance costs of hydroelectric power plants and to provide financial compensation for related transactions within the energy redistribution mechanism of the Brazilian Electricity Commercial Chamber. It is updated annually based on changes in the inflation index and the annual reference price. The optimized energy tariff for the Itaipu hydroelectric power plant is calculated based on payments for energy concessions to Paraguay, royalties, and operating and management costs of the Itaipu binational management entity. The estimated cost of electricity generation from the Itaipu plant, denominated in US dollars, is converted to local currency using the daily geometric average of the US dollar closing exchange rate published by the Central Bank of Brazil, covering the period from December 1st of the year preceding the calculation year to November 30th of the calculation year. Ancillary service tariffs are used to compensate for the additional operating and maintenance costs incurred by generating units required by the national power system operator to operate as synchronous condensers.