Celesc is the largest electricity utility company in the Santa Catarina, a state located in Southern Brazil. Aware that investing in energy saving actions is more viable than investing in the expansion of the electrical system, Celesc developed the Motor Bonus Program in 2018. The program promotes energy efficiency by replacing old or reconditioned motors with new, more modern and efficient motors, using a financial bonus system of up to 40% that varies according to the power of the old motor. It is a very simple way to drastically reduce the investment needed to purchase a high efficiency motor that will provide substantial energy economy, enabling participants to consume less electricity and increase their competitiveness.

Among the results of the Motor Bonus Program, an initiative by the Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency (in Portuguese, Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica, ANEEL) coordinated by Celesc and operated by WEG, was the replacement of more than 1,700 motors in the State of Santa Catarina/Brazil, which represented a total economy of 18.64 GWh per year and a reduction in consumption at peak hours of 2.4 MW. Such economy corresponds to the consumption of approximately 7,500 homes in the same period. Participating customers had an average bonus of 33.78% when changing their motors.

All of those benefits occurred through the Energy Efficiency Program, recognized worldwide and benchmark for promoting the efficient use of electric energy in all sectors of the industry by means of projects that demonstrate the importance and economic viability of improving the energy efficiency of equipment, processes and end uses of energy.

By promoting energy efficiency initiatives in electric motors, Association of Energy Engineers® (AEE) awarded programs, such as the Celesc Motor Bonus, show the important work being done in energy worldwide. WEG is proud to have had the opportunity to operate a program such as the Bonus Motor, in partnership with Celesc, as the program contributed to increasing energy efficiency rates in Santa Catarina State, home of the Brazilian multinational company's headquarters.

The AEE World Energy Conference 2020 is an international award and will be presented virtually on Wednesday, October 14, via the world.aeecenter.org website.