Ailson de Souza Barbosa

Dr. Ailson de Souza Barbosa

Senior Energy Regulation Specialist

Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency (ANEEL)

Dr. Ailson de Souza Barbosa, Senior Energy Regulation Specialist at the Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency (ANEEL), was honored at the 9th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER IX), held in Tbilisi, Georgia, from 21 to 24 September 2026. He received the 2026 ICER Distinguished Scholar Award in the “Impact on Developing Countries” category for his work on regulatory models to support the deployment of smart metering systems in the Brazilian distribution system.

With more than 40 years of experience in the electric power sector, Dr. Barbosa combines technical expertise in power system distribution, service quality regulation, loss reduction, energy efficiency, and innovation. He holds a D.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Brasília (UnB), with research focused on power quality services, as well as an MSc in Electrical Engineering from UFCG, and an MBA in Energy Operations Management from CEFET/RJ.

Since 1998, he has served at ANEEL as Energy Regulation Specialist, overseeing regulatory frameworks for distribution and transmission services and leading initiatives on service quality regulation. He also held strategic leadership roles at the agency, including Superintendent of R&D and Energy Efficiency (2017–2020) and Advisor to the Board (2013–2017). Earlier in his career, from 1984 to 1998, he worked as an Electrical Engineer at SAELPA in planning, construction, operation, and maintenance of distribution systems. He has published seventeen papers in these fields, with particular interest in power flow, energy losses, power quality, research and development, smart grids, and energy transition