LEI NO. 10,847, OF March 15, 2004

Authorizes the creation of the Energy-Research Company? EPE and gives other arrangements.

THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC I know that the National Congress decrees and I sanction the following Law:

Art. 1º Stay the Executive Power authorized to create public company, in the form set out in the inciso II of the art. 5º of Decree-Law No. 200, of February 25, 1967, and in art. 5º of the Decree-Law No. 900 of September 29, 1969, called the Energy-EPE Research Company, linked to the Ministry of Mines and Energy.

Art. 2º The Energy Research Company-EPE has for purpose provide services in the area of studies and research aimed at subsidizing the planning of the energy sector, such as electric energy, oil and natural gas and its derivatives, mineral coal, renewable energy sources and energy efficiency, from among others.

Single paragraph. EPE will have headquarters and venue in the Federal Capital and central office in Rio de Janeiro and indefinite term, and may establish offices or dependencies in other units of the Federation.

Art. 3º The Union will integrate the social capital of the EPE and promote the initial constitution of its heritage by means of capitalization.

Single paragraph. The integralization will be able to give itself through the incorporation of movable or immovable property.

Art. 4º Compete to EPE:

I-carry out studies and projections of the Brazilian energy matrix;

II-elaborate and publish the national energy balance;

III-identify and quantify the potentials of energy resources;

IV-give support and participate in joints relating to the energy use of rivers shared with neighbouring countries;

V-undertake studies for the determination of optimal harnessing of hydraulic potentials;

VI-obtain the environmental advance licence and the declaration of water availability required for tenders involving hydro generation and electrical power transmission ventures, selected by EPE;

VII-elaborate studies necessary for the development of the expansion plans of the generation and transmission of short, medium and long term electric power;

VIII-promote studies to support the management of the reserve ratio and production of hydrocarbons in Brazil, aiming at sustainable self-sufficiency;

IX-promote market studies aiming to define demand and supply scenarios of oil, its derivatives and products petrochemicals;

X-developing studies of social impact, technical-economic and socio-environmental feasibility for the energy and renewable energy ventures;

XI-effeco the monitoring of the implementation of projects and feasibility studies carried out by interested and duly authorized agents;

XII-elaboration studies concerning the director plan for the development of the gas industry natural in Brazil;

XIII-developing studies to evaluate and increment the use of energy from renewable sources;

XIV-give support and participate in the joints aiming at the energy integration with other countries;

XV-promoting studies and producing information to subsidize plans and environmentally sustainable energy development programs, inclusive, of energy efficiency;

XVI-promoting target plans aimed at the rational use and energy conservation, and may establish cooperation partnerships for this purpose;

XVII- promoting studies aimed at supporting programs for the modernization and empowerment of the domestic industry, aiming to maximize the participation of this in the effort to supply the goods and equipment needed for the expansion of the energy sector; and

XVIII-develop studies to increment the use of national mineral coal.

Single paragraph. The studies and research developed by EPE will subsidize the formulation, planning and implementation of actions of the Ministry of Mines and Energy, within the framework of the national energy policy.

Art. 5º Constituem resources of the EPE:

I-rents or emoluments from services provided to legal persons of public or private law;

II-ressarcement, pursuant to the relevant legislation, of costs incurred in the development of hydroelectric basin inventory studies, technical-economic feasibility of hydroelectric and environmental impact harnesses, as well as in the processes for obtaining license prior;

III-product of the sale of publications, technical material, data and information, including for the purposes of public bidding, administrative emoluments and enrolment fees in public tender;

IV-resources coming from agreements and arrangements that carry out with national and international, public or private entities;

V-income of financial applications that carry out;

VI-donations, legacies, grants and other resources that are intended for it by physical or legal persons of public or private law; and

VII-rents coming from other sources.

Art. 6º It is dispensed from bidding the hiring of the EPE by public administration bodies or entities with views in carrying out the integral activities of its object.

Art. 7º Act of the Executive Power shall approve the status of the EPE.

Art. 8º The EPE will be administered by a Board of Directors, with deliberative functions, and by an Executive Board, and in its composition it will still count on a Tax Council and an Advisory Board.

Art. 9º The Board of Directors shall be constituted:

I-from 1 (one) President, appointed by the Minister of State for Mines and Energy;

II-of the President of the Executive Board;

III-from 1 (one) Counsellor, appointed by the Minister of State for Planning, Budget and Management; and

IV-of 3 (three) Councillors, indicated as a regulation.

§ 1º The Board of Directors shall convene, ordinarily, each month and, extraordinarily, whenever convened by its President or by 2/3 (two-thirds) of its members.

§ 2º The decisions of the Board of Directors will be taken by a simple majority, by the President the quality vote, in the event of a tie.

§ 3º The quorum of deliberation is that of absolute majority of its members.

Art. 10. The Executive Board will be constituted of 1 (one) President and 4 (four) Directors.

Single paragraph. The President and the Directors are responsible for the acts practiced in disregard of the law, with the status of the company and with the institutional guidelines emanating from the Board of Directors.

Art. 11. EPE will have a Fiscal Council constituted of 3 (three) members, and respective alternates, with tenure of 4 (four) years, permitted reconducts.

§ 1º The Fiscal Council shall convene, ordinarily, every 2 (two) months and whenever convened by the Board of Directors.

§ 2º The decisions of the Fiscal Council will be taken by a simple majority, and the President the quality vote, in the event of a tie.

§ 3º The meetings of the Fiscal Council will only have deliberative character if they count on the presence of the President and at least 1 (one) member.

Art. 12. The EPE Advisory Board is composed of:

I-5 (five) representatives of the State Secretaries Forum for Energy Affairs, being 1 (one) of each geographic region of the country;

II- 2 (two) representatives of the electric power generators, being 1 (one) of hydroelectric generation and another of thermoelectric generation;

III-representative of the electric power transmitters;

IV-representative of the electric power distributors;

V-representative of the fuel distributor companies;

VI-representative of the gas distributor companies;

VII-representative of oil producers;

VIII-representative of the producers of national mineral coal;

IX-representative of the sucroalcoholic sector;

X-representative of the entrepreneurs of alternative energy sources;

XI-4 (four) representatives of energy consumers, being 1 (one) industry representative, 1 (one) representative of the trade, 1 (one) representative of the rural sector and 1 (one) representative of the residential consumers; and

XII-representative of the scientific community with specialization in the energy area.

Single paragraph. The Advisory Board shall convene, ordinarily, every 6 (six) months and, extraordinarily, whenever convened by its President or by 2/3 (two-thirds) of its members.

Art. 13. The competencies of the Board of Directors, the Executive Board, the Fiscal Council and the EPE Advisory Board, and the chances of removal and replacement of their respective members, will be established in regulation own.

Art. 14. The legal regime of the EPE staff will be that of the Consolidation of Labour Laws and their supplementary legislation.

Art. 15. The hiring of effective staff of the EPE will be by means of public tender of evidence or evidence and titles, observed the specific standards edited by the Board of Directors.

§ 1º For purposes of implantation, stands the EPE equated to the legal persons referred to in the art. 1º of Law No. 8,745 of December 9, 1993, with a view to the hiring of technical and administrative staff for a definite time.

§ 2º It is considered as a temporary necessity for exceptional public interest, to the effects of Law No. 8,745 of December 9, 1993, the hiring of technical and administrative staff for a definite time, which is necessary for the initial functioning of the EPE.

§ 3º The hiring referred to in para. 1º will observe the willing in the art caput. 3º, in the art. 6º, in the inciso II of the art. 7º and in the arts. 9º and 12 of Law No. 8,745 of December 9, 1993 and shall not exceed the period of 36 (thirty-six) months, from the date of the installation of the EPE.

§ 4º It is authorised to EPE to establish cooperation arrangements technique with direct and indirect administration entities, aimed at viabilizing the technical and administrative activities indispensable to their functioning.

Art. 16. It is authorized the EPE to sponsor closed entity of private welfare pursuant to the current legislation.

Art. 17. This Law comes into effect on the date of its publication.

Brasilia, March 15, 2004; 183º of Independence and 116º of the Republic.

LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA

Dilma Vana Rousseff

Guido Mantega