evaluating r&d program of the brazilian electricity sector through industrial property indicators

The Law 9,991/2000 can be considered a milestone in the history of the ANEEL R&D Program, which was created to stimulate the technological development of the Brazilian Electricity Sector. Around R$ 4.5 billion were already invested in the program, covering more than 6,000 projects. Considering the amount of resources involved, the present study aimed to evaluate the results of this program, after the Law 9,221/2000, using industrial property indicators as a measure of performance. The research was based on a survey of the applications for patents and industrial designs, filed in the Brazilian Patent Office (INPI), by the 117 companies operating in the electricity generation segment. The findings showed: the companies that had at least one patent or industrial design application filed in the INPI after the Law 9,991/2000; the type of protection requested; and if the content of the application was related to the goals of the program.