Reviewing the privatization of Eletrobrás is one of Lula's greatest successes.
Lula said the process had been "erratic" and "almost like a bandit's act."
BRASILIA (Reuters) - President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday that the Attorney General's Office (AGU) will likely request a court review of the Eletrobras privatization contract, citing the process as "erratic" and "almost a form of banditry."
"It was almost a form of banditry to prevent the government from regaining a majority stake in Eletrobras. In fact, the Attorney General of the Union will possibly go to court so that we can review this leonine contract against the government," Lula said in an interview with journalists at the Planalto Palace.
"Because it's against the government, both in terms of shareholding—we want to have more people in management and more people on the board—and this business of not being able to buy, you'll pay three times more. That's irrational, Machiavellian, and we can't accept it," added the president, who, however, denied that his administration has plans to renationalize the company.
The privatization of Eletrobras was approved during the government of former president Jair Bolsonaro, amid criticism from left-wing parties such as Lula's PT.
Last week, in a message to Congress, the government had already criticized the privatization of Eletrobras, stating its concern about mitigating the "negative consequences" of the process on energy tariffs due to the removal of quotas and the concentration of market power in a private company.
He also said that the Union's loss of the ability to influence the direction of the electricity company is "worrying and should be a focus of attention."
The statements repeated ideas that had been put forward by the government's transition team earlier in the year, and which had created apprehension in the market.
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