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Rita Knop, Commercial Director

Free market far beyond freedom of choice for small and medium-sized businesses


Freedom is the condition of one who is free, that is, it is the ability of an individual to act for himself. In the electricity sector, the understanding of the word refers to the free market, which is nothing more than a trading environment in which all participants have the chance to agree on all commercial conditions, including price, quantity of contracted energy, supply period and payment terms, among other things, without a mandatory link with the current energy supplier.

At the beginning of the year, Brazil took an important step to stimulate migration to the free market. From now on, all clients connected to medium and high voltage (Group A), with a consumption of around 30 kW and bills of R$ 5 thousand or more, can join the Free Contracting Environment (ACL). In addition to choosing the preferred supplier, clients have space to negotiate the provision of the service. The novelty mainly serves small and medium-sized businesses, such as bakeries, hospitals and factories.

In addition to the possibility of signing contracts that may offer a reduction of up to 35% compared to the rate charged so far, energy vendors have in their hands a great opportunity to heat up the economy of those who are included in Group A. According to data from the Electric Energy Trading Chamber (CCEE), this group has 202 thousand consumer units, of which almost 38 thousand are already on the free market and about 72 thousand units have the potential to join the modality.

This is because the amounts obtained with the reduction in the electricity bill can be transformed into an investment for business expansion. A savings available for other purposes, whether for expanding the client base, hiring employees, or buying new equipment. In this sense, the new energy market has everything to be a driving force for the growth of those entrepreneurs who were previously unable to negotiate their contracts.

In Europe and the United States, the free energy market is already much more developed, with the participation of residential customers. In Brazil, the opening of the market to customers served in low voltage is expected to take place in the near future. If Mercado Livre were opened today for all categories, the scenario would be similar to what happened with the telephone service.

In addition to the opportunity to choose, the new energy market offers good prospects for the economy as a whole, as it stimulates competition, advances in the creation and offer of products and solutions for retailers to meet other customer needs, such as the decarbonization of their processes.

With the forecast of a migratory dynamic involving small and medium-sized companies, compulsorily represented by energy dealers, the expectation is also that clean energy will drive the transformation of the sector.
This is because in the processes of opening the energy market, companies stand out that cease to be simply energy suppliers and become an energy advisor for the provision of new products and services in order to make the production chain of their customers even more sustainable.

In a society that has incorporated new consumption habits and which increasingly requires innovative practices from companies focused on reducing carbon emissions, it is indispensable for marketers to transform and anticipate the demands of the future in the electricity sector with sustainable solutions. In this sense, those who combine freedom of choice with differentiated products and services to stimulate competition will come out ahead, making this new market even more attractive and with an individualized focus on the needs of each customer.