Edenor is a public Argentine electricity distribution company founded in 1992 and headquartered in Buenos Aires.[2] The company has an exclusive concession to distribute electricity in the northwestern section of Greater Buenos Aires, and in the north of Buenos Aires proper, selling electric power to residential, commercial, industrial, and government customers.[2]
Edenor's 34,500 kilometers of network and 2.5 million customers represent 18.5% of the Argentine market in its industry.[3][4]
History
Edenor, originally known as Empresa Distribuidora Norte Sociedad Anónima, was established as a Public Limited Company on July 21, 1992, as part of the privatization process of Servicios Eléctricos del Gran Buenos Aires SA (SEGBA).[5]
During the privatization, SEGBA was split into three distribution companies, with Edenor being one of them, alongside four energy generating companies.[5]
EDF International SA, a subsidiary of Electricité de France SA, was among the international investors that participated in the tender through an Argentine company named EASA, which signed a purchase and sale agreement with Argentina's national government. The agreement granted Edenor a concession to exclusively distribute electricity within its designated area for a duration of 95 years.[5]
On September 1, 1992, EASA acquired enough stock to become the majority shareholder.[5]
In the early 1990s, electricity theft was a significant issue in Argentina, with companies like Edenor and Edesur suffering losses in the millions each year due to illegal connections often by shantytown residents who often used high-power heaters in the wintertime. To stop the theft, Edenor attempted to regulate power usage through automatic circuit breakers, but due to resistance from some community and political activists, came to a compromise that restored power in exchange for reduced reliance on high-energy heaters.[6]