National Rural Electrification Programme - Programa Nacional de Electrificação Rural

In rural areas, the "Luz no Campo" national rural electrification programme set as its goal for its first stage (to 2002) to provide electrical power to one million rural homes, which would benefit approximately five million people. This translates into a demand for resources worth 2.7 million reales. In 2000, contracts with over 40 concessionaires were signed. Meaning Light in the Countryside the project was launched in December 1999, by the federal government address to the stagnation in rural electrification after the restructuring of the power sector. Aimed at connecting nearly a million rural households in the three-year period from 1999-2002, Luz no Campo is the single largest rural electrification programme implemented in Brazil. Initial estimates forecasted an investment of around 1 billion dollars, that is nearly 1000 dollars per new consumer. As of September 2002, 480000 connections had been made, and another 125000 were in process. A total of 823000 new customers have signed contracts. As of 2004, no off-grid connections had been made under the programme. This could be partly be attributed to the relatively low cost of grid connections, averaging 970 dollars per connection. Rural consumers are typically expected to pay the full costs of the connection, albeit spread over a number of years. Luz-no-Campo lends 75% of the investment to concessionaires on easy terms - a 6% rate of interest, two-year grace period, and a five to ten year repayment period. Concessionaires finance rural consumers on similar terms, but in some cases the State governments provide partial subsidies, assuming the consumers contribution.