Public lighting concessions in Brazil show significant energy savings

Public-private partnerships (PPPs) for public lighting in Brazil have expanded to 158 contracts across 187 municipalities, benefiting 27% of the national population. According to the Brazilian Association of Public Lighting and Smart Cities (ABCIP), these concessions represent R$ 39 billion in contracts and are expected to reach an additional 25 cities this year.

Belo Horizonte serves as a primary model through its concessionaire, BHIP. By replacing sodium vapor lamps with LED technology and implementing IoT-based remote management, the city achieved a 55% reduction in electricity consumption, resulting in an estimated R$ 150 million in savings between 2020 and 2025. The modernization also reduced system failure rates from 7% to 0.5% and prevented the emission of approximately 800,000 tons of CO2.

ABCIP president Pedro Iacovino noted that the technology has significantly improved maintenance response times, dropping from up to 10 days to between 12 and 48 hours. Currently, 836 cities have expressed interest in adopting this model to modernize their lighting infrastructure.