Bonfring International Journal of Power Systems and Integrated Circuits, Vol. 1, Special Issue, December 2011 26
ISSN 2250 – 1088 | © 2011 Bonfring
Abstract--- Developing countries, especially the BRICS
(Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) set off a
process of economic development and social inclusion,
leading to the creation of a burgeoning middle class eager
and able to purchase goods, services and facilities like electric
power with high-quality. Brazil faces now a new arrangement
of the society in economic terms, but still has problems with
culture and governance of communities in areas which were
dominated by crime, drug dealers, especially in Rio de
Janeiro. In Rio, the state government occupied these areas
with a special task force police denominated UPP (Unit of
Pacification Police). The occupation is like a war strategy, but
it is the first step of a process that should be concluded with
social inclusion. This is an opportunity to many companies,
especially the utilities to include new clients in a formal way.
But there are challenges to be solved to guarantee the
sustainability of this process. Social stratification is not
enough to address and define the behavior of these new
customers. The diversity of behavior found in this social group
impacts the utilities operations in terms of non-technical
losses increasing. In the electrical sector, the culture of non-
payment for public services elevates total losses to levels
higher than 50%. The inclusion of this new middle class is
fundamental for the reduction of the non-technical losses. To
achieve this, the utility companies face a threefold challenge:
(i) to fully include the group in economic, social and digitally
terms; (ii) to maintain them as regular customers in
compliance with the contractual obligations implied in the
electricity supply; and (iii) to educate them in energy
efficiency. Through the VI Energy Efficiency Program, created
by Change through Digital Inclusion (CDI) for The Light
Company, a Brazilian Electricity Utility operating in Rio de
Janeiro State, these new included customers can make savings
upwards of 47kWh/month, representing a 22% saving in
energy.
Keywords--- Energy Efficiency, Energy Inclusion, Digital
Inclusion, Reduction in Non-Technical Losses, Social
Inclusion
Jose Edimilson Canaes, Director of Operation, CDI - Change through
Digital Inclusion, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. E-mail: ed.canaes@cdi.org.br,
jose.canaes@usp.br
Jose Aquiles Grimoni, Associate professor at Polytechnic School, USP -
University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil. E-mail: aquiles@pea.usp.br line
I. INTRODUCTION
HERE is a clear development of the economy in the
emerging countries like Brazil where a new "C" class is
eager for consumption of products and services. The present
economic class stratification in Brazil has a diamond shape.
This trend has been very fast as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1: Economic Class Stratification in Brazil Source
The emerging Middle Class is the most relevant change in
economic stratification in Brazil, with the highest growth. The
future is popular: for each “A” or “B” individual, there are 9
from the “C”, “D”, or “E” Class (as the study made by [1]).
This is a great commercial opportunity in a scenario of poor
life standards. In Brazil, it is quite usual to have slums and
rich areas living almost without boundaries. But in fact they
are divided by virtual frontiers which are very difficult to
cross. The Figure 2 shows two photos of these areas, one in
Sao Paulo another in Rio de Janeiro, where rich and poor
people are living very close.
Figure 2: Two Examples of Social Situation in Latin America.
Slum Area in cities in Brazil, one in the Neighborhood of
Morumbi in Sao Paulo and other in the neighborhood of
Ipanema in Rio de Janeiro Photo: AES ELETROPAULO and
CDI – NICK
Sustainable Programs for Inclusion of Low Income
Customers and Energy Efficiency Education
Jose Edimilson Canaes and Jose Aquiles Grimoni
T