Esperanza Transmissora de Energia

active

In May 2014, the Spanish company Cymi Holding S.A. (Grupo ACS) was awarded the contract to build and operate the transmissions line Quixada -Acu III, Acu III-Joao Camara III, Joao Camara III-Ceara Mirim II and Joao Camara II-Ceara Mirim, all located at the state of Ceara and Rio Grande do Norte (492 km in total length). Besides Cymi, only another bidder took part in the contest: Alupar Investimentos. The bidding criteria set by the regulatory agency ANEEL was the lowest required annual revenue. Cymi presented the lowest offer, a total value of US$ 20.8 million (BRL 48.8 million), 23.24% below the ceiling set by the regulatory agency. The contract was signed in September 2014, and the sponsors created the company Esperanza Transmissora de Energia S.A. to lead the project during the 30-year contract period. In June 2016, Cymi sold 50% of its shares in the project company to the Canadian investment fund Brookfield. Total investment was estimated at US$ 61.6 million (BRL 215 million). Construction works commenced in September 2015, and, as of December 2016, construction works had been concluded in three of the four transmission lines: Acu III-Joao Camara III, Joao Camara III-Ceara Mirim II and Joao Camara II-Ceara Mirim. Financing information was not disclosed. The company was granted the right to take part in the government program called Regime Especial de Incentivos para o Desenvolvimento da Infra-Estrutura (Reidi). Companies selected to take part in this program were given tax cuts in the acquisition of capital equipment and construction material acquired both in the domestic and international markets (this incentive represented a cost reduction of about 9.25%). In addition, the company was allowed to use accelerated depreciation methods of accounting for construction expenditures.