ANDE: Sending 'blacklists' to ex-Informconf forces thousands to regularize payments

Paraguay's National Electricity Administration (ANDE) is reporting swift success with its new strategy of reporting delinquent customers to credit bureaus. Within four days of sending the first batch of 10,000 overdue accounts to Equifax (formerly Informconf), 1,590 customers, or 15.9%, had either settled their debts or arranged payment plans, thereby avoiding negative credit reporting.

This initial push has already recovered G. 11.9 billion (approximately $1.6 million USD) in overdue payments. Hugo Rolón, ANDE's commercial manager, confirmed the positive balance, noting that the financial pressure compelled users to act before their credit access was blocked or their services were cut off.

“

The financial pressure forced users to react before seeing their credit access blocked in the commercial market.

Buoyed by this immediate impact, ANDE is preparing to send another group of 15,000 customers to Equifax in the coming days. The utility company aims to reduce its overall delinquency rate from the current 19% to 16% by the end of 2026. The total outstanding debt owed to ANDE amounts to roughly $160 million USD from 350,000 active customers with five or more overdue bills.

To further incentivize voluntary payments, ANDE is also running a promotion called “Ñande Ahorro” until the end of the month, offering a 100% waiver on late fees and interest-free installment plans. For the second wave of reporting, ANDE will apply stricter criteria, prioritizing accounts with longer delays and larger outstanding amounts, specifically those with six pending bills and a debt exceeding G. 1,500,000.

“

This week we will be sending another package of 15,000 customers to the confidential information platform.