The successful strategy for the promotion of energy transition in Brazil

The relationship between climate change and energy production is natural. However, in a country like Brazil, the association between the two terms may not be immediate. The energy transition in Brazil has a unique character; the country is unique among the 10 largest economies in the world in that almost half of the total energy consumed is from renewable sources. Considering only electricity generation, the renewable sources – hydroelectric, biomass, solar and wind – exceed 90%.

This is not the same scenario for most countries, where the energy sector is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHG). In Brazil, the main source of GHG emissions are changes in land use.

“The country has particularities and different realities from other nations in relation to energy issues and it is necessary to compare experiences and exchange good practices,” says Philipp Hauser, the president of the decision-making body of the E+ Energy Transition Institute. This is a Brazilian think tank that works for the just energy transition and industrial transformation, through research, studies and analyses for public policies, as well as advocacy and the coordination of different actors.

E+ began in 2016, when iCS was planning its strategy to contribute to the decarbonization of the energy sector and realized that the country lacked an entity that could debate the topic broadly and, at the same time, influence and contribute with innovative public policies aligned with a more ambitious climate agenda.

“In 2017, several international networks were already mobilized on the issue of the transition to lower carbon emission energy sources. However, in Brazil, iCS was the only organization working on this topic and we felt the need for an entity that would act more like a think tank, with the ability to directly influence decision-makers in the public sector and, over time, in the private sector,” recalls Roberto Kishinami, a senior specialist at iCS, who initiated and monitored the formation of E+.

Since its foundation, E+ has launched around 20 studies and has participated in national and international discussions with respect to the climate and energy transition, such as the Climate Conferences and Climate Week. During this period, E+ has managed to promote and consolidate an agenda in Brazil for a just energy transition that includes an innovative and competitive industry following the new international parameters for the decarbonization of the economy.

In 2024, Rosana Santos, the executive director of E+, was recognized with the Green Economy Award. The recognition is given by the Green Economy Parliamentary Front of the Chamber of Deputies to 10 leaders and entities that have contributed, in the previous year, with important initiatives in favor of a low carbon economy.

“Our impacts and outcomes are not immediate and, at times, even difficult to measure, because they come from the building of knowledge and advocacy. What we know is that today, after six years of operation, we can state that we are a reference in the decarbonization of industry and the electricity sector. We are called upon to provide our technical opinion and to discuss the topic in the main forums of the sector and with decision-makers,” says Santos.

Decarbonization of industry and transport

In addition to their work in the production of knowledge through studies and technical reports, E+ technicians and specialists have dedicated themselves to the development of analyses and proposals for the construction of public policies and in the coordination of diverse links in the chain of the sector. The current focus of their work is the decarbonization of the industrial and transport sector.

For Santos, the decarbonization of these segments must be seen as an opportunity for Brazil to create employment and generate value for society, improving the quality of life for everybody. “The country, due to its great wealth of natural resources, has everything it needs to promote a just energy transition, which must be accompanied by a greater balance and a reduction of the inequalities between developed and developing countries.”

Over the years, E+ has increasingly gained ground among actors from the public and private sectors and opinion makers. “The seriousness of our work, with the studies, and the production and interpretation of data, has made us a reference in the energy sector,” says Santos. “Thanks to this status that we have achieved, we have proposed paths for public policies and projects for the country. We are also moving closer to the private sector, seeking solutions that add value to the greener production chain that we have in the country.”

Barroso follows the same path to explain the incidence of E+ on various actors. “E+ has a strong technical team, which gives great weight and representativeness to the demands of civil society in the energy area,” he says.

Currently, E+ already has an agreement for technical cooperation with the State Department for Economic Development of Minas Gerais for the development of public policies for energy transition in the state and discussions with several ministries.

It is also one of the think tanks participating in T20, which is an engagement group of G20 Social that is responsible for discussing and consolidating ideas to address the current and emerging challenges to be addressed by the G20.

Within the scope of T20, E+ was a co-coordinator of the task force for Sustainable Climate Action and Just and Inclusive Energy Transitions. It was responsible for the analysis and approval of public policy suggestions on the topic, which will be presented at the G20 summit in November. It also has international representativeness through partnerships with other international institutions.

COP30 Showcase

According to Santos, E+ will take advantage of the visibility that the country will gain in 2025, with the COP 30 in Belém, in order to publicize the capabilities of Brazil. “We will show that the country is the first in the world whose electricity sector can reach a power generation using 98% renewable sources,” he says.

According to EPE, in 2023, 89.2% of the Brazilian electricity matrix (which includes, in addition to the National Interconnected System (SIN), isolated systems, imports and self-production not injected into the grid) was composed of renewable sources. Considering only the SIN, this index reaches 93%, and could reach 98% if non-renewable thermoelectric power plants are excluded and considering the current and future investments in solar and wind generation. “To achieve this, the incentive policies need to prioritize these sources over non-renewable sources,” Santos points out.

The second point that E+ wants to address at COP 30 is the construction of a Belém Consensus. This is a proposal by E+ that will bring together political decisions made with the participation of representatives from several countries gathered at the Climate Conference and that is capable of decentralizing the economic development and rethinking the global supply chains with the objective of reducing emissions. In the view of the executive director of E+, this is one of the measures that will contribute to decarbonizing the economy and reducing the inequality between countries.

The E+ Institute also intends to present studies and calculations to show other countries how Brazilian industry already produces in a greener manner, with clean energy, which makes Brazilian products more sustainable.

“Energy transition is not an end in itself, but a facilitator of the decarbonization of the economy. The transition to a new economic cycle, based on low carbon, is what we are ultimately seeking as a response to the climate emergency,” concludes Santos.

Social and economic advances in tune with nature conservation

The achievements along the way have been possible thanks to careful planning since the creation of E+. Roberto Kishinami had visited Agora Energiewende, a German think tank that works on the development of proposals for energy and climate policies with a focus on carbon neutrality. The institution was, therefore, one of the references for the design of E+.

At the same time, in 2018, Luiz Barroso, the current CEO of PSR, an energy sector consultancy, was leaving the presidency of the state-owned Energy Research Company (EPE) and wanted to continue contributing to the public debate about the energy sector. He envisioned an entity that would provide opportunities for civil society participation in the discussions and decisions. “This is a fundamental stakeholder, but it has always been far removed from the planning process of the energy area policies,” he says.

After being introduced to iCS, Barroso began to work to attract experts and decision-makers to E+ and to analyze how civil society could participate in the formulation of public policies. “Our entity should represent the people, so that they have a voice in this process. The true energy transition needs to count on the participation of civil society,” he states.

Similarly, Hauser highlights the character of the dialogue of E+ as its main strength. “The institute promotes constructive dialogue between different areas – civil society, the financial sector, and public and private interests – with the objective of reaching holistic solutions, complying with the economic, environmental and social demands of Brazil, and not aiming only at the profit of certain agents. What we seek is the social and economic advancement of Brazilian society, in tune with the conservation of natural resources,” he states. “This was the foundation for the creation of E+ and the basis of the work to date.”

The manager of Energy and Industry at iCS, Victoria Santos, highlights the role of E+, including in the Brazilian domestic and global agenda. “The E+ Institute was conceived by ICS with the purpose of supporting the energy transition as a vector for social and economic development in Brazil. In 5 years, E+ has managed to structure itself and gain importance by guiding the agenda of the energy transition and industrial transformation of the country before national and international public and private entities. In the field of the decarbonization of industry, E+ has sought to provide visibility to opportunities and propose ways to overcome barriers so that Brazil can consolidate itself as a global provider of low carbon manufactured products, valuing regional vocations and national intellectual capital.”