With its Salto Osório and Salto Santiago hydroelectric plants situated on the Iguaçu River, ENGIE has been awarded Paraná Climate Seal certification  in the ‘’GOLD PLUS 2020’’ category. This award is made to companies located in the state of Paraná that submit their Greenhouse Gas Emissions’ Inventories for Inmetro-accredited third party verification, validating a year-on-year reduction in emissions.

The seal is an initiative of the State Tourism and Sustainable Development Secretariat (Sedest) and was created with the aim of combating climate change while at the same time preparing  Paraná-based companies for the regulatory challenges which lie ahead among which the probable introduction of some form of carbon tax. The measure is under study  for promoting the transition to a low, more environmentally sustainable carbon economy.

This is the third year that ENGIE has been successful in being awarded the Paraná Climate Seal in the “Gold” category and the second consecutive year in the “Gold Plus” category. The award is made up of three categories: Original, Gold and Gold Plus.

“The Paraná Climate Seal is one more award that underscores ENGIE’s socio-environmental engagement and is indicative that we are on the right track towards fostering  sustainable development nationwide and more especially in the state of Paraná, where we have been for more than 20 years.”, comments, ENGIE Brasil Energia’s Chief Executive Officer, Eduardo Sattamini.

ENGIE’s track record in Paraná

For more than 20 years now in Paraná, ENGIE operates in the state through the Salto Osório Hydroelectric Power Plant (installed capacity of 1,078 MW), municipal district of São Jorge d’Oeste (PR), and the Salto Santiago Hydroelectric Power Plant (installed capacity of 1,420 MW), municipal district of Saudade do Iguaçu (PR), both of which are situated on the Iguaçu River and acquired in an auction held in 1998. In the intervening period, the two plants have received a series of investments and today they are among the most modern hydroelectric power plants in Brazil.

In the  socio-environmental area, some of ENGIE’s most important Research and Development projects are those conducted jointly with UNIOESTE for the protection of the biodiversity, especially, preservation of the ichthyofauna  endemic to the Iguaçu River and the production of seedlings in the environmental vegetable garden at the Salto Osório plant. In the latter, approximately 70 thousand seedlings/year are produced and planted along the banks surrounding the reservoirs and donated to the community. The company also operates the project for protecting headwater springs, more than 2 thousand of them having been preserved in the region’s rural properties. Finally, ENGIE also maintains the Quedas do Iguaçu Culture Center, supporting the community with socio-cultural projects. 

Focus on sustainability and renewable energy

One of the benchmarks in sustainability in Brazil, ENGIE Brasil Energia has been a component of the Stock Exchange’s Corporate Sustainability Stock Index (ISE) since inception in 2005. Nearly 90% of the Company’s installed capacity is derived from renewable sources and with low GHG emissions, such as hydroelectric, wind, solar and biomass powered plants. “It is part of  ENGIE’s daily routine to work towards the development of the country on the basis of clean energy, contributing increasingly to reducing our carbon footprint or neutralizing our clients’ carbon emissions. The electric sector has been one of the drivers of global decarbonization and it is ENGIE’s intention to spearhead this movement with solutions which are renewable as well as in close proximity to the clients”, Sattamini points out.