CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: COMPARISON BRAZIL AND PORTUGUAL OF INNOVATIONS IN ENERGY EFFICIENCIES OF COMPANIES IN THE WATER AND SEWAGE SECTOR

Corporate social responsibility is the commitment that a company has to balance, the multiple interests such as shareholders, employees, suppliers and society at large. It provides an ethical environment and sustainable development through the efficient use of natural resources, without compromising the needs of future generations. To make this happer, managers must harmonize profitability and competitiveness with issues such as susteinability, performance enhancement and cost reduction. In any country, energy is one of the main resoources of potable water production systems and sewage treatment. In any country, energy is one of the main resoources of potable water production systems and sewage treatment. This exploratory study deals with the responsibility and the efforts of the sanitation companies in search reduction of consumption of electric energy, which is considered an important input for the economic and social sustainability of the sanitation public service. It was analyzed the history of energy consumption in five large water supply companies (4 in Brazil and 1 in Porturgal) in the period from 2009 to 2016. Secondary data were extracted from the financial statements to generate a consumption index of electricity in water and sewage systems. The characteristics of the regulatory framework aimed at inducing the efficiency of the sanitation system, such as the use of the rate of return regime, are discussed and compared with the performance of the companies studied. The results show that the reduction of the energy consumption of four companies is related to sustainability and innovation programs. It is concluded that companies in the sanitation sector still have a long way to go in terms of sustainability and innovation in reducing the use of energy resources.