The Brazilian Association of Energy Storage Solutions (ABSAE) issued a public statement in Brasília on October 16, 2026, on Resolution CIIA-PAC/CC No. 6 of 2026. In the association's view, the new regulatory act reaffirms the strategic nature of Brazil's first battery auction, because it brings energy policy closer to other public policies. For those who develop, build or supply storage systems, the statement serves as a signal that the auction remains at the center of the government agenda.
What ABSAE highlighted in the statement
The statement is short and has a clear focus: the association reads the resolution as confirmation that the storage auction is no longer a topic restricted to the power sector. By linking battery procurement to a broader set of public policies, the government indicates that the auction is seen as an instrument of state policy, and not merely as a one-off purchase of capacity.
The key points of the statement can be summarized as follows:
- Who: ABSAE, the entity that represents companies in the energy storage chain in the country.
- What: a public position on Resolution CIIA-PAC/CC No. 6 of 2026.
- When and where: October 16, 2026, in Brasília.
- Main message: the resolution confirms the strategic relevance of the first battery auction, connecting energy policy to other areas of public policy.
In the available material, the statement does not detail the auction's schedule, volumes or rules. Its importance therefore lies less in operational data and more in the institutional signal it reinforces.
Why the link with other public policies matters
Battery storage projects, known by the acronym BESS (Battery Energy Storage System), depend on predictability. They are assets that require high upfront capital, equipment supply contracts negotiated in advance and connection studies that take time. When an auction is treated as a priority across more than one government front, coordination among agencies tends to become clearer and the risk of discontinuity tends to decrease.
In general terms, integrating storage with other policies may involve topics such as infrastructure, industrial development, investment attraction and security of supply. Each of these fronts has its own instruments and responsible bodies. ABSAE's reading is that the resolution helps tie these ends together around the auction, which tends to give the auction more political weight.
The role of batteries in the power system
BESS systems store energy at times of surplus and return it to the grid when demand rises or renewable generation drops. In a power mix with a growing share of wind and solar, this flexibility helps the operator balance supply and consumption over short intervals, in addition to providing services such as capacity support during peak hours.
In the Brazilian sector debate, battery procurement has been associated with capacity reserve auctions (LRCAP), a modality in which the system pays for the availability of capacity, and not only for the energy actually delivered. In this model, factors such as the connection margin available at substations, that is, how much new power injection the grid can accommodate at a given point, become decisive for the viability of each project.
What this means in the Northeast
If the battery auction gains priority, competition for connection points with spare grid capacity is likely to intensify. A survey by ENLACE of Northeastern substations eligible for LRCAP 2026, based on an ONS technical note on connection margin, identified 14 substations in Bahia, 10 in Ceará and 6 in Piauí with a margin of 500 MW or more. These are points where larger projects may, in principle, find room to connect.
In practice, this means that developers active in the region need to treat connection margin as an early screening criterion, before moving forward with land, permitting and supplier negotiations. The concentration of points with spare capacity in a few states also suggests that competition for these substations may be fierce.
Our take
In our assessment, ABSAE's statement confirms a direction the market had already been noticing: battery storage is being treated as a structural piece of energy policy. We view the coordination with other public policies favorably, because it tends to reduce the perception of regulatory risk, which is one of the factors that weighs most on the cost of capital for new projects such as BESS.
At the same time, a political signal does not replace rules. The available material provides no details on the schedule, the volume to be procured, qualification criteria or technical requirements. Until these points are defined, investment decisions will continue to depend on assumptions. There is also the risk, common in unprecedented processes, of adjustments to the schedule or rules along the way, which requires some flexibility in developers' planning.
In the coming weeks, we will follow developments related to Resolution CIIA-PAC/CC No. 6 of 2026, any new regulatory acts linked to the auction and statements from industry associations, including ABSAE itself. We will also watch how the integration with other public policies is translated into concrete rules for the auction.
What changes in practice for the BESS chain
In ABSAE's reading, the resolution does not immediately change the rules of the game, but it reinforces that preparing is worthwhile. For each link in the chain, the implications differ:
- Developers: prioritize the selection of connection points, organize land and permitting documentation and keep financial models ready to be adjusted when the rules are published.
- EPCs: structure teams and proposals for storage works, considering implementation timelines and integration with existing substations.
- Manufacturers: monitor how the link with other public policies may be reflected in future requirements and assess capacity to serve the Brazilian market.
- Suppliers and integrators: start conversations with developers early, since equipment negotiation is often one of a project's critical paths.
In short, the message to the market is to prepare with caution: the auction remains a priority, but the details that will define the competitiveness of each bid are yet to be known.
Original source: ABSAE — NOTA PÚBLICA ABSAE | RES CIIA-PAC/CC 6/2026
Paulo Melo