The big hydroelectric plant in the Amazon produced 15,842,794 MWh from January to March
Por Celso Chagas
Belo Monte was the top fully Brazilian-owned hydroelectric plant in terms of energy generation in the first quarter of this year, accounting for 9.69% of the country’s total electricity demand. From January to March, the plant produced 15,842,794 MWh — enough to supply all households in Brazil’s Southeast region over the same period, according to data from the National Electric System Operator (ONS).
The Belo Monte Dam complex is located on the northern part of the Xingu River in the state of Pará.
With an average output of 7,334 MW during the quarter, Belo Monte reached a peak on January 21, when it alone supplied 12% of Brazil’s electricity consumption between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. — the country’s peak demand hours.
This generation record occurred during a period marked by heat waves, which led Brazil to break several energy consumption records. The most recent was on February 26 at 2:24 p.m., when the country hit a new all-time high of 106,536 MW of instantaneous demand on the National Interconnected System.
On that day, Belo Monte was the hydro plant that contributed the most to meeting national demand, generating 8,325 MW on its own, approximately 8% of what the country required at that time — enough to meet the demand of 45.4 million people.
“Belo Monte’s energy generation in the first quarter demonstrates the importance of hydroelectric plants for the reliability of Brazil’s power grid, especially during peak consumption hours,” said Paulo Roberto Pinto, president of Norte Energia, the plant’s operator.