See how Cemig’s weather radar operates

Have you ever seen a weather radar? It allows you to identify, through the emission and reception of waves, the formation of rain, storms and hail. Our radar is installed in the municipality of Mateus Leme at “Morro do Elefante”, Minas Gerais. Its strategic location, at about 1,270 meters of altitude and almost without barriers in its area of influence, allows a wide sweep.  

It can efficiently monitor a 250 km radius but can reach up to 350 km for quality assessments of storm inputs in the State of Minas Gerais. With the use of the radar, it is possible to more accurately forecast the occurrence and intensity of rainfall and therefore alert Civil Defense about storms that could have serious consequences for the population, allowing a preventive action.

Benefits

Our three main business segments (generation, transmission and distribution) are directly impacted by weather phenomena. This was one of the main reasons for the investment in the implementation of the weather radar.

With one of the largest distribution grids in Latin America, we have our electrical system susceptible to natural phenomena such as atmospheric discharges, storms and strong winds. These phenomena can cause undesirable interruptions in power supply. A forecast of where a storm will occur will not prevent sudden shutdowns but will allow us to allocate maintenance teams in advance to the necessary places and times, helping to quickly restore the system.

The weather radar is also strategic for the control and operation of the reservoirs of hydroelectric power plants. With the anticipation of information on the direction of rainfall movement and intensity, it is possible to estimate the volume of water that will reach the reservoir and adjust its hydraulic operation to minimize the effects of flooding on the population and the facility.  Considering the significant relevance of weather alerts to society, Cemig signed an agreement with the Water Management Institute of Minas Gerais (Igam), Which took over the responsibility of the weather radar operation and maintenance, in addition to producing weather alerts that are passed on to State Civil Defense and the cities of Minas Gerais.