São Paulo, March 21, 2018 - EDP, a company that operates in all segments of the electric sector in the country, concluded the acquisition of 14.5% of the total shares of Centrais Elétricas de Santa Catarina SA - CELESC , previously belonging to PREVI - Caixa de Employees Pension Plan of Banco do Brasil,on Wednesday,the 21 st.

In the transaction, R$ 244 million was invested in the purchase of 33.1% of the voting capital, the equivalent of 5.141 million common shares and 1.9%, corresponding to 437,8 thousand preferred shares. “The partnership with CELESC integrates a new cycle of growth at EDP in Brazil, with emphasis on the Energy Distribution and Transmission segments and the expansion of our presence in new geographical areas,¨ says the president of the Company, Miguel Setas.

At the Company also announced that it is waiting for the authorization of B3, previously BM&FBovespa, in order to carry out a Voluntary Public Offering for the acquisition of shares (VPO), through which it would be possible to acquire up to 32% of the CELESC preferred shares, which would increase its total stake to 33.6%.

At the investments planned by EDP in Santa Catarina already amount to R $ 1.6 billion over the next five years, including the amounts for the acquisition of the distributor shares and for the construction of 485 kilometers of transmission lines in the southern part of the state. The works are part of Lot 21 of the Aneel Auction held in April of 2017, which was acquired by the two consortium companies.

"With this investment, EDP hopes to be able to contribute to the development of the State of Santa Catarina in a crucial sector of the local economy and Santa Catarina society¨, concludes Miguel Setas.

About EDP Brasil 

With more than 20 years of experience, EDP is one of the five largest private companies in the electricity sector operating throughout the value chain. The Company, which employs more than 10,000 direct and outsourced collaborators, has 15 hydroelectric generation units and one thermal electric power plant, and serves around 3.3 million customers in São Paulo and Espírito Santo, in addition to working in Transmission, Marketing and Energy Solutions. In Brazil, it is the benchmark in areas such as Governance and Sustainability, being in the B3 Corporate Sustainability Index (ISE) for 12 consecutive years. Recently, it has stood out as a pioneer in the use of robotization and has acquired a stake in CELESC in Santa Catarina. It has a market value of about R $ 9 billion, three times more than in 2005, when it went public.*

About CELESC 

Centrais Elétricas de Santa Catarina SA - CELESC is a semi-public corporation that has operated since 1955 in the areas of generation, transmission and energy distribution. During this period, it has become one of the largest companies in the Brazilian electric sector and recognized nationally and internationally for the quality of its services and its actions in technical, economic, environmental and social areas. In 2006, taking into account the model recommended through national electric sector legislation, the Company was structured as a holding company with two wholly-owned subsidiaries: CELESC Geração SA, which has 12 operational plants with a capacity of 106.75 MW, and CELESC Distribuição SA, which serves more than 2.8 million customers in the state. The three companies employ about three thousand professionals.