BRAZIL: CEMIG WILL CONSTRUCT HYDROELECTRIC PLANTS
Gazeta Mercantil, 02 Mar 2000, p. C-4:-
 The Brazilian state run energy company Cemig will invest the amount of R$ 
520mn in 2000.
The company, together with private companies, intends to begin the 
construction of 5 hydroelectric plants in 2000, and they are:
- Irape, in the river Jequitinhonha, which will have generation capacity of 
360MW and has the sewerage company Copasa and the construction company 
Andrade Gutierrez as partners;
- Aimores, in the river Doce, which will have generation capacity of 330MW 
and has Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD) as partner;
- Porto Estrela, with generation capacity of 112MW and has CVRD and Coteminas 
as partners;
- Queimado, with generation capacity of 105MW and has the electricity company 
Companhia de Eletricidade de Brasilia as partner and
- Pocos de Caldas, together with Brazilian Petroleum Company (Petrobras) and 
ABB.
Cemig currently has a total generation capacity of 5,893MW, and with these 
new plants, it will increase by 930MW.


BRAZIL: CEMIG WILL BORROW US$ 38MN
Gazeta Mercantil, 02 Mar 2000, p. C-4:-
 The Brazilian energy company Cemig will borrow the amount of US$ 38mn, in 
foreign markets, with the intention to extend debts.

BRAZIL: CEMIG WILL ACQUIRE HYDROELECTRIC PLANT
Gazeta Mercantil, 02 Mar 2000, p. C-4:-
 The Brazilian energy company Cemig will conclude the negotiations with the 
company Acesita for the acquisition of the hydroelectric plant Sa Carvalho by 
the end of March 2000.
The value of Sa Carvalho, which has generation capacity of 78MW, is of R$ 
86mn and Cemig will pay R$ 25mn out of this amount with own resources, while 
the rest will come from operations with banks, which are not defined yet. 
Cemig may create a Specific Purpose Company (SPC).
Acesita is a steel company controlled by the French group Usinor, and Sa 
Carvalho will still supply energy exclusively to the company after its 
acquisition by Cemig. 



BRAZIL: ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION IN SAO PAULO 
Gazeta Mercantil, 02 Mar 2000, p. b-19:-
 The electricity consumption in the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo increased by 
5.3% from January 1999 to January 2000, when it reached 7,836 GWh to 11.44mn 
consumers.
Residential consumption reached 2,332 GWh, increasing by 2%. Commercial 
consumption reached 1,343 GWh, increasing by 3%. Industrial consumption 
increased by 11.2%.
The state of Sao Paulo has capacity to generate 12,783 MW, being 6,218 MW 
from the company Cesp (Companhia Energetica de Sao Paulo), 2,651 MW from 
CGTEE (Companhia de Geracao de Energia Eletrica Tiete) and 2,307 MW from 
CGEEP (Companhia de Geracao de Energia Eletrica Paranapanema).


BRAZIL: FUELS PRICES INCREASED IN SAO PAULO
O Estado de S.Paulo, 02 Mar 2000, p. b-3:-
 The prices of fuels in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo increased on March 
1st 2000 as follows on average:
- common petrol by 7.37% (from R$ 1.197/litre to R$ 1.286);
- diesel oil by 3.99% (from R$ 0.601 to R$ 0.625);
- additived petrol by 6.05% (from R$ 1.315 to R$ 1.394);
- premium petrol by 6.84% (from R$ 1.471 to R$ 1.572);
- alcohol by 1.89% (from R$ 0.795 to R$ 0.810).
The information above resulted from a survey carried out by the institution 
InformEstado with 33 petrol stations. 



BRAZIL: INVESTMENT OF ELECTROLUX IN PLANT
O Estado de S.Paulo, 29 Feb 2000, p. B-34:-
 The domestic appliances company Electrolux invested the amount of US$ 1.5mn 
in its plant to produce vacuum cleaners motors, and intends to increase its 
exports to Europe and Mercosur.
The plant will export 30% of its total production, what represent, at least, 
300,000 motors per year.
Electrolux expects to increase its revenue from R$ 15mn to R$ 20mn in 2000. 


BRAZIL: OIL ACCOUNT SURPLUS IN 1999
O Estado de S.Paulo, 02 Mar 2000, p. b-1:-
 According to the Brazilian National Treasury Secretary, Fabio Barbosa, the 
surplus of the Brazilian oil account decreased from R$ 2.46bn in 1998 to R$ 
2.342bn in 1999, not reaching the R$ 3.2bn expected in the budget.


BRAZIL: DELAY IN SALE OF SANITATION COMPANIES 
O Estado de S.Paulo, 02 Mar 2000, p. b-4:-
 The privatisation of several Brazilian sanitation companies will be delayed 
as follows:
- privatisation tenders of Compesa and Embasa are expected for September 2000 
at least, and not June or July as previously expected (Compesa operates in 
the state of Pernambuco and Embasa in the state of Bahia);
- Caern is expected to be privatised in the 1st quarter of 2001 (Caern 
operates in the state of Rio Grande do Norte);
- the sanitation company of the city of Manaus is expected to be privatised 
on April 4th 2000 (delay of 15 days). 



BRAZIL: RESULTS AND PLANS OF MPE
Gazeta Mercantil, 02 Mar 2000, p. c-3:-
 The Brazilian company MPE (Montagem e Projetos Especiais) reached a turnover 
of R$ 240mn in 1999 (approximately 80% with the engineering division with 
services for the electricity, telecommunications and oil sectors), expecting 
to increase it to more than R$ 300mn in 2000.
The company will increase its investments from R$ 15mn in 1999 to R$ 35mn in 
2000 and plans to participate in thermal power stations projects (assembly 
and maintenance) with its subsidiary EBE (Empresa Brasileira de Engenharia). 


SPAIN: EXPANSION PLANS OF IBERDROLA
Cinco Dias, 02 Mar 2000, p.5:-
 Spanish electricity operator Iberdrola, which jointly with other Spanish 
electricity operators have claimed to government to stop oil operator 
Repsol-YPF and gas operator Gas Natural join venture in the electricity 
sector, has announced that will continue with its investment plans based on 
the construction of combined cycle power stations totalling 2,400 MW during 
next six years.
By other side, Iberdrola has planed to expand through South America, by 
exchanging telecoms assets with Spanish telecoms operator Telefonica, 
expecting to increase its 15.3% stake of Brazilian subsidiary of Telefonica, 
TeleBahia, and by a future alliance with Brazilian gas operator Petrobras.
Iberdrola expects to increase between 10% and 12% yearly its net profits 
during next four years.


ARGENTINA/BRAZIL: REPSOL-YPF-PETROBRAS ALLIANCE
Buenos Aires Economico, 02 Mar 2000, p. 2:-
 Spanish-Argentine oil firm Repsol-YPF announced it has proposed to Brazilian 
Petrobras to follow up with the exchange of oil areas and to plan 
join-ventures in the gas and electricity generation areas, as part of this 
firm's plans for Latin America. Repsol-YPF wants to share this region's risks 
with other companies with a strong presence in the area. 
Repsol-YPF-Petrobras' alliance in the upstream sector may also allow the 
Spanish company to balance its solid presence in the Argentine market, where 
it controls 40.22% of oil production and 35% of gas production. 


ARGENTINA: DEMAND FOR ENERGY GREW IN FEBRUARY
Buenos Aires Economico, 02 Mar 2000, p. 2:-
 Argentina's energy distribution firms Edenor and Edesur closed February 2000 
with 9.9% and 11.8% increases in terms of demand in their respective areas of 
the city of Buenos Aires and its suburbs, in Argentina. Both firms closed the 
first two months of the year 2000 with 12.1% and 13.2% increases in the same 
mentioned terms. 


ARGENTINA: RESULTS OF YPF FOR 1999
El Cronista Comercial, 02 Mar 2000, p. 15:-
 Two days after Spanish Repsol announced its results for 1999, on March 1, 
2000, Argentina's oil company YPF announced US$ 767mn in profits for the 
results reported at the end of its 1999 fiscal year closed on December 31, 
1999, 32% over the figures reported by the end of 1998 (US$ 580mn). Excluding 
some extraordinary results, the firm's net profit reached US$ 477mn. Such 
positive results were a consequence of the 33% increase the price of oil 
experienced in world-wide markets throughout 1999 and higher sales of natural 
gas, which expanded this firm's operational profits some 34%, from US$ 
1.146bn to US$ 1.535bn.