Photo: source photograph.
Brazil’s Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) gave the federal government 120 days to submit technical studies on the future of the Angra 3 nuclear power plant, followed by another 120 days for the National Council for Energy Policy (CNPE) to decide whether construction should resume or be abandoned. The TCU approved the order unanimously on Oct. 21.
Construction at the plant in Rio de Janeiro state has been halted since 2015. The TCU said maintaining the stalled project costs roughly R$1 billion annually, including operating and financial expenses. The decision assigns a timetable for resolving a long-running policy and fiscal question; it does not itself authorize completion or cancellation. The government and the energy-policy council must still choose between those paths after reviewing the required studies.
Angra 3 is part of Brazil’s nuclear power system and its future affects public finances, electricity planning and companies involved in the nuclear supply chain. The project has repeatedly faced delays and cost uncertainty. A decision to continue would require a credible financing and completion plan; abandonment would raise questions about sunk costs and the treatment of existing assets. Those trade-offs are why the TCU’s deadline matters beyond the plant’s immediate region. The timetable is intended to replace indefinite delay with a formal decision supported by technical analysis.