With a consolidated trajectory in the technology market, Intelbras has been expanding its operations in the energy sector, investing in increasingly complete solutions to serve everything from residential consumers to larger projects.
To understand the company's next steps — which has just strengthened its portfolio with new launches and is preparing innovations for the areas of batteries and hybrid inverters — Canal Solar spoke with Marcio Ferreira, managing director of Intelbras' Energy BU.
In the interview, Ferreira comments on the challenges faced by the company in light of fluctuations in the solar market, strategies to maintain competitiveness in light of new regulatory requirements and the brand's projections for 2025.
He also details how Intelbras has positioned itself in the face of falling lithium prices, the growing opportunities in the residential backup market and the company's work in off-grid projects, such as the program Light for All, formerly More Light for the Amazon..
Intelbras is already a well-known brand, but to start, tell us: when we talk about the energy market, what solutions does the company offer today?
Intelbras is a solid company, with 49 years of history, widely recognized for investing heavily in after-sales and in training its partners.
We have close and specialized service, operating from Monday to Friday, from 8 am to 20 pm, and on Saturdays until 18 pm, to provide full to the consumer, especially in critical situations.
In the energy segment, we are leaders in the low-power UPS market and, starting in May, we will offer solutions reaching 200 kVA, expanding our reach.
In the solar sector, we have been operating since 2019 with a complete portfolio for on-grid and off-grid applications. We offer everything from solar s, inverters, charge controllers, to lithium and lead-acid batteries, solar pumps and mobility solutions, such as flexible modules for vehicles. Our focus is to deliver integrated solutions that guarantee efficiency and reliability for all customer profiles.
We are also looking at the advancement of electromobility and are constantly updating and expanding our portfolio of chargers for electric vehicles.
You have been in the solar market for about six years, which has undergone significant transformations during this period. How has Intelbras faced the various challenges?
In fact, the market went through significant turbulence. At the same time, we had a change in legislation, a change in government and a sharp drop in the prices of equipment coming from Asia. All of this had a direct impact on the chain.
The year 2023, in particular, was challenging. The misleading communication that “the sun would be taxed” anticipated a demand that emptied part of the market later.
However, as a financially solid company, we are going through this period maintaining our investments and looking to the long term. We remain confident in the potential of solar energy, especially for homes and small businesses, where the return on investment remains quite attractive.
We already feel a significant recovery in 2024, and 2025 tends to be even more positive, following the maturation of the market and the professionalization of integrators.
And for 2025, what are Intelbras' strategic plans for the solar market?
We continue to invest heavily in the development of new solutions. In October last year, we launched the new Ion inverters, which bring greater efficiency and an extended warranty to our business partners.
We are also developing Grid Zero solutions/products, scheduled for the second half of the year, and working on the launch of hybrid inverters and a new microinverter model.
This entire movement seeks to expand our portfolio to keep up with the growing market demands and offer reliable and efficient alternatives to our customers.
The issue of flow reversal has been a major concern in the sector. How is Intelbras preparing for this demand?
We are launching a 7,5 kW inverter, which greatly facilitates automatic approval at various dealerships, respecting the requirements of each distributor. We provide full to our partners — we want to ensure that they are prepared to meet the new market demands.
In addition, the launch of Grid Zero solutions/products is scheduled for the beginning of the second half of the year and will reinforce this front. We always seek to anticipate market needs, aligning innovation and specialized technical .
What about the energy storage market? How do you see the evolution of battery prices and the adoption of these solutions in Brazil?
The drop in lithium prices has been significant, making batteries more competitive. Although the payback period for households is still not ideal, we are seeing a growing interest in backup solutions, especially in light of climate crises and power outages.
There is a natural movement of consumers seeking greater energy security, and our off-grid charger inverters are being well received in this scenario. We have also seen condominiums and even apartments investing in these solutions to ensure autonomy during power outages.
You have extensive experience in the off-grid segment, especially in the Mais Luz para a Amazônia program, which is now Luz Para Todos. How did Intelbras play a role in this project?
The former Mais Luz para a Amazônia, now Luz Para Todos, was a challenging and very rewarding project. We worked for more than four years and installed more than 6 systems in remote locations in Acre and Mato Grosso.
In some regions, it was necessary to transport the equipment by boat or even by ox cart, given the difficulty of access. More than the economic return, it was a project that gave us enormous personal and professional satisfaction.
Seeing families having access to cold water or being able to properly preserve food, something simple for many but transformative for these communities, makes us proud to contribute to improving the quality of life of these people.
What about the development of large plants? Does Intelbras also operate in this segment?
Yes, we have an area dedicated to power plants. We have a specialized sales team focused on projects of up to 5 MW for the mini-generation market. Our model is quite competitive, especially for large funds and investors who want to work in distributed generation.
In these cases, we work in the Full EPC format, delivering the complete project, ready to operate. However, with integrators it ends up being a little different, since many of them also offer this type of service.
Therefore, we operate in a highly controlled manner to ensure that plants are built with the appropriate size and quality, providing the right service for each customer profile.
And in this role, does Intelbras develop the project and also carry out the construction, or does it rely on partners for this stage?
Contractually, the responsibility for delivering the plant in operation is entirely ours. We have a robust internal structure for project development, ensuring efficiency, quality and generation performance.
During the physical execution of the work, such as cable installation and assembly, we work with specialized EPC partners. It is a combination that allows us to maintain quality control and ensure the delivery we promise to the client.
And when we talk about plants for investors, what is Intelbras' participation like? Do you operate as a Full EPC, delivering the entire solution?
Exactly. In the case of large power plants, we act as a Full EPC. The entire solution provided is Intelbras: inverters, solar s, equipment, everything. We assume full responsibility for supplying the plant and issue the invoice directly to the client as the generator.
This gives security to those who invest, because they know who to turn to if necessary. We make a point of keeping the volume controlled to ensure full responsibility for each investment. However, with integrators it ends up being a little different, since many of them also offer this type of service.
In your view, what will be the main challenges for the electricity and solar energy sector in 2025?
High interest rates are still the main challenge, as they make financing more expensive for consumers. However, we are seeing an increase in interest from the middle class, which is very positive for the sector.
Our role will be to keep our dealerships well prepared and reinforce a fundamental message: solar is not all the same. More than price, it is essential that the consumer seeks safety, differentiated products, warranty and after-sales .
We believe that the market will consolidate, and serious companies, like Intelbras, that deliver quality solutions and maintain their commitment to the customer, will stand out.
In closing, would you like to highlight any additional points?
Today, we have more than 120 distributors and more than 100 resellers connected to our portfolio, not just for energy, but for all Intelbras solutions.
We believe in the strength of our reach and the importance of ing the market, to guarantee our partners and end consumers a differentiated and trustworthy experience.
And, as a final message, I would like to reinforce our commitment to quality: solar is not all the same and, at Intelbras, energy is not just solar. We offer a complete portfolio that s our partners in delivering solutions and growing their revenues, with the security of relying on a manufacturer with 49 years of history.
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An answer
There is no doubt that solar generation is moving predominantly towards hybrid systems with batteries, with the grid of the concessionaires functioning as a backup and as if it were an infinite bar. I agree that price is still an obstacle, but as a rule of the economy, the increase in scale will contribute to reducing it. There is intense research worldwide, as always, with China standing out, to see if this will happen in the short and medium term. The independence of having energy supply at any time is an attractive advantage, especially for industrial and commercial sectors with high demand and consumption. See the prices of kWh at peak times and for overtaking demand. It is, on average, 4 times higher. Engineer, professor, master in electrical engineering sciences – power system-COPPE/UFRJ, designer in solar generation, energy efficiency, electric vehicle charging station, including a carpot for solar generation.