1999: Bersani Decree, privatization and Digital Meter - In 1999, the
Italian electricity sector was liberalized with the Bersani decree. The decree
prescribes Enel must separate production, transmission, distribution and sell
to "suitable" customers, along with the obligation to reduce its
production capacity. In line with the decree, the company completes the process
of "becoming a company": Enel Produzione, Enel Distribuzione and Terna
are born.
1999 was also the year of Enel’s privatization and stock market
debut, with the placing of nearly 4 billion shares (the largest public offering
in Europe and second in the world by value and by number of subscribers).
Starting November 2, Enel’s shares are listed on the Italian Stock
Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.
Enel is transformed into an industrial holding company: from the
Group stem new companies for the development of various business opportunities,
from telephone to gas.
In 1999, Enel Distribuzione starts a project involving the replacement of 30
million meters in use at customer sites. The result of these efforts will
result in the creation of the "Digital Meter" an integrated
system to measure, report and manage the electricity supply contract, using the
power grid for data transmission.
2001: Enel abroad - In September 2001, Enel wins the entire capital
of the Spanish Viesgo, a company operating in the generation and
distribution of electricity with a capacity of around 2,400 MW.
In December, CHI Energy (a US-based company acquired by Enel Group in 2000 and
active in the field of renewable energy) completes the construction of a wind
power plant in the United States and a biomass power plant in
Canada. The installed capacity amounts respectively to 30 MW and 23
MW.
Also in 2001, the Enel Group started the construction of a 1095 km long
high-voltage transmission line in Brazil. Furthermore on March 2002, an
agreement is signed for the construction of a 1278 km long section of a line
high-voltage, linking the north of Brazil to the south.
