Following the extratropical cyclone that struck São Paulo on December 10, over 1.3 million Enel customers remained without electricity by the evening of December 11. With no restoration timeline provided, authorities ramp up criticism of the utility and demand federal intervention.
As reported earlier, the cyclone brought winds up to 98 km/h, toppling trees and initially blacking out 2.2 million homes across Greater São Paulo. By 8:45 p.m. on December 11, 1.3 million customers—over 900,000 in the capital alone—were still affected, despite Enel restoring service to about 1.2 million using over 1,600 teams and 700 generators.
The utility acknowledged severe infrastructure damage requiring full reconstruction of poles, transformers, and cables in some areas, but offered no timeline for complete normalization.
Mayor Ricardo Nunes slammed Enel for 'irresponsibility,' highlighting 137 fallen trees whose removal depends on the company. Governor Tarcísio de Freitas called for federal intervention and potential caducity of Enel's contract, expiring in 2028, criticizing the outdated contingency plan and lack of network automation investments.
Broader impacts worsened: water shortages hit areas like Morumbi and Vila Mariana; Congonhas Airport saw 300 flight cancellations; commercial losses reached R$ 100 million; Ceagesp faced spoilage without refrigeration; residents resorted to costly generators (R$ 3,800 for eight hours), with condominiums considering lawsuits. The Ministry of Mines and Energy deployed reinforcements, totaling nearly 2,000 teams.
