The Floating Power Plant that Navigated Brazil

The trajectory of the Seapower floating power plant, later called Piraquê and Poraquê, reveals a little-known history of energy in the 20th century. Created in the context of war, the vessel crossed borders and was deployed in times of emergency to keep cities and industries running.  

Built in 1943 by the Bethlehem Steel Company, Seapower was part of a complex of four thermal power plants. With 25,000 kW of power, 109 meters long and weighing 5,500 tons, it generated around 600 MWh a day, a volume close to Maracanã's current estimated monthly consumption.  

In 1950, the former Seapower arrived in Rio de Janeiro and was acquired by the Brazilian Hydroelectric Company, linked to Light, and renamed Piraquê. Installed in Caju Cove and connected to the Campo Grande substation, it increased the capacity of the Rio Light System by 7.6%.  

The arrival of Piraquê reflected the challenges of a rapidly expanding city. In the midst of Rio de Janeiro's populational and industrial growth, the plant was incorporated into Light's system to reinforce the energy supply and meet increased demand.   

In 1954, Light transferred Piraquê to Companhia Brasileira de Energia Elétrica (CBEE), which used it until 1961, especially to supply Niterói. Without its own propulsion, the plant depended on tugboats to move around Guanabara Bay and between different operating points.  

At the end of the 1960s, Piraquê was bought by CEEE and taken to Rio Grande do Sul to meet the growing demand for energy. Installed in 1969, it began to supply Porto Alegre as a complementary source, reaffirming its role as a mobile solution in times of urgency.  

But Piraquê's journey through Brazil wasn't over yet: after crossing oceans and serving different cities, the plant would literally go from south to north, heading for the Amazon.  

In 1976, CEEE sold the power plant to Companhia de Eletricidade de Manaus (CEM). When it arrived in the Amazon, the old Piraquê was renamed Poraquê, a reference to the electric fish of the region's rivers. The change marked its entry into a new energetic and symbolic landscape.   

Born in the context of war, the plant has crossed oceans, rivers and decades as a unique technical solution. Its long operation reveals robust technology, adaptable to different electrical systems and maintained by the daily work of technicians and operators.  

Today, the documents preserved in the Memória da Electricidade collection make it possible to reconstruct and disseminate part of this little-known history, reaffirming the importance of document preservation so that these experiences don't disappear.