Brazilian utilities pull down over 1,500 tons of illegal cables in citywide clean‑up drives

Through Operation Gatonet, Neoenergia Coelba removed 642 tonnes of irregular telephone and internet cables from more than 38,600 poles across Bahia, including 35 tonnes in Salvador and the largest hauls in Lauro de Freitas, Itaberaba and Barreiras.

Enel São Paulo reported an 8 % increase in cable thefts during the first half of 2026, with 4,400 incidents and 19,570 customers affected; 78 % of the cases occurred in the city of São Paulo.

The Guarulhos municipality’s “Segue o Fio” program, in partnership with concessionaire EDP, logged the removal of 9,913 tonnes of cables from city streets in the first six months of 2026.

Cuiabá’s “Operação Telefone Sem Fio” cleared about 500 kg of abandoned cables on Avenida Dom Bosco, bringing the total removed in the campaign to more than 12 tonnes.

Criciúma’s “Operação Limpa Fios” extracted 450 kg of obsolete cables along Avenida Rui Barbosa, part of a broader effort that has already eliminated roughly five tonnes this year.

In a separate incident in Faxinal, thieves stole around 20 metres of 10 mm electric wire from a rural property, damaging the power connection.