Half million still without power in Sao Paulo from storm

SAO PAULO: Half a million consumers in Latin America’s largest city are still without electricity three days after a violent gale knocked down power lines and caused a blackout, the distributor owned by Enel said on Monday.

The delay in resumption of power supplies has led to criticism of the distributor from politicians and authorities, with calls to cancel the concession. Enel Sao Paulo said it would need time to restore parts of the electricity network that was damaged on Friday night by winds of more than 100 km/h. At least five people died in the storm that knocked over trees in the city’s streets.

Regulatory agencies Aneel and Arsesp said the company’s response to the storm was “much below expectations” and warned that they could recommend allowing Enel’s contract to expire. Enel is facing similar criticism in Chile, whose government said in August it will study whether the Italian electricity distributor’s local unit meets the terms of its concession to operate in the country after thousands of customers were left without power following a storm. According to Enel Sao Paulo, 537,000 consumers were still without electricity as of midday on Monday.