Joel Santos takes command of the CUED: key challenges in the electricity sector
Joel Santos, former Minister of Energy and Mines and current president of the Unified Council of Electricity Distribution Companies (CUED), has assumed the leadership of this entity with a clear priority: to address the high rates of losses, both technical and non-technical, that affect the national electricity system. His management will focus on continuing investment plans aimed at modernizing substations, distribution networks, and power equipment.
The challenge of the Comprehensive Loss Reduction Plan
One of Santos’ main commitments is the completion of the 2022-2028 Comprehensive Loss Reduction Plan. This project, which manages an investment of over US$1.6 billion, was initially led by Celso Marranzini. Despite the capital injected, the current outlook presents difficulties, as energy losses have not shown the expected decrease; in fact, in certain sectors, they have experienced an increase.
According to the performance reports from the Ministry of Energy and Mines as of May 2026, energy losses in distribution companies stand at 38.9%, which represents an increase of 1.1 percentage points compared to the same period of the previous year.
Ambitious goals versus technical reality
The original plan set the goal of reducing losses to an average of 27% by the year 2027. The individual targets for the distributors are:
- Edenorte: Reduction from 26% to 20%.
- Edesur: Reduction from 32% to 20%.
- Edeeste: Reduction from 56% to 41%.
Due to the remaining time and current indicators, reaching these figures is shaping up to be a highly complex challenge for the new administration.
Investments and pending projects
Despite the obstacles, the sector has maintained a steady pace of investment. By mid-2026, a cumulative investment of US$700 million was reported, with an additional projection of US$225 million for 2027 through World Bank financing. These resources are earmarked for the rehabilitation of more than 1,180 kilometers of networks and the normalization of hundreds of thousands of supplies, positively impacting nearly 580,000 citizens.
Joel Santos’ agenda also includes critical tasks that require immediate attention:
- Technical shielding of networks in vulnerable areas to guarantee supply under Law 125-01.
- Strengthening and expansion of remote management systems, including telemetering and remote disconnection.
- Optimization of the prepaid program and effective integration of Bonoluz system customers.
