THE startup of renewable energy Flora Energia arrives in Rio de Janeiro to make the energy supply clean and sustainable and reduce the electricity bill. While in São Paulo Energytech achieves savings of up to 10%, in the state of Rio de Janeiro the discount is even greater, up to 17%. With the water crisis and the consequent increase in the tariff flag by the concessionaires, the deduction can reach 26.5% in the capital of Rio de Janeiro.
“In Rio, the cost of energy (kWh) to the customer is higher, due to factors such as the greater loss in the distribution process. In addition, there is an exemption from ICMS on Energy Credits from Distributed Generation, so it reduces the amount that must be paid to the distributor and Flora manages to deliver even more savings in the region”, points out Roberto Cavalieri, one of the company's founders. The user does not need to invest in panel installations or other works; just sign up on the digital platform and you are ready to have the discount on your account.
Created in 2020 and present in more than 300 municipalities, Flora reached 100% of capacity in the interior of São Paulo. The startup works through the Distributed Generation system, in which sustainable farms produce and inject renewable energy into the local utility's electrical grid, receiving energy credits that are then passed on to their customers in the form of a discount on their electricity bill.
The distributor remains responsible for supplying energy – therefore, there are no additional risks of power outages – and sends the bill with the reduced amount. Flora issues a separate invoice, referring to consumption in the month – which is directly deducted from the concessionaire's account. The sum of the two invoices is always smaller than the traditional model.
The benefits to the pocket are combined with the reduction of the environmental impact: Flora already avoids the emission of more than 215 tons of CO2 in the atmosphere per year, consuming clean energy, which means an equivalent of more than 10 thousand trees planted. “We created a unique operational, commercial and technological solution that makes it possible to efficiently serve the residential customer. In addition to a greater supply of renewable energy in the market, we enable consumers to have freedom of choice – previously tied to the monopoly of the concessionaire in their region”, says Cavalieri.
The collective imagination is that more electricity is used in winter, but the forecast is that the electricity bill will remain high even in the hottest seasons. “The consumption profile changes, but less is not necessarily spent. If, on the one hand, winter spends more on hot showers, heaters and lights that are turned on earlier, due to early dusk, in summer the increase in consumption occurs mainly due to greater use of air conditioning, refrigerators and fans, for example”, lists the founding partner of Flora Energia.
With the water crisis, the bill tends to get even bigger. Due to the emptying of the reservoirs of the hydroelectric plants, the government took emergency measures to guarantee the supply of energy and avoid the blackout, such as the activation of more thermoelectric plants, which have higher costs.
Aneel (National Electric Energy Agency) approved the auction for contracting reserve energy from May to 2022 until December 2025, a period whose costs must be passed on to consumers. “With Flora, the customer guarantees predictability in their spending, keeping the same tariff level at all times, with protection against all flag variations”, says Cavalieri, who recommends conscious consumption.
Regarding the Flora Energy – startup pioneer in offering renewable energy to residential consumers. Created in 2020, Flora Energia's mission is to democratize access to clean and sustainable energy, with a discount on the electricity bill of up to 26.5%, through a practical, fast and 100% digital experience.