Brazil sees surge in electricity theft, with over 28,000 cases reported in 2026

The concessionaire Light disclosed 28,193 instances of electricity theft and related fraud in its service area between January and June 2026. Inspections targeted 251 priority points, recovering 4.4 GWh of diverted power – enough to supply roughly 22,000 homes for a month – and generating an estimated R$ 7.7 million in recovered value. Light estimates annual losses from theft at R$ 1.3 billion and reports that about 36 % of its customers have some form of irregular consumption. Police actions linked to the operations produced 155 reports, 145 testimonies and 98 arrests.

In Mato Grosso, Energisa recorded 14,362 fraud cases from January to May 2026, averaging one theft every 15 minutes. The tally includes 10,870 illegal connections (“gatos”) and 3,492 meter tampering incidents, with Várzea Grande alone accounting for 37 % of the state’s irregularities. The company’s Center for Loss Combating, using artificial‑intelligence analytics, directs inspections to high‑risk sites. The joint “Energia Limpa” operation with civil and military police has already led to more than 140 arrests this year. Both providers warn that illicit connections overload the grid, increase outage risk and endanger public safety.