Solar for Amazon Communities in Brazil

Introduction

Minigrids already provide electricity for more than 3 million people in the Amazon Rainforest, mostly powered by diesel generators. In 2023, this cost an estimated USD $2.5 billion (paid for by the tax-funded Fuel Consumption Account) and created approximately 1.6 MtCO2eq in emissions. These minigrids are often owned by Independent Power Producers that benefit from subsidies, which have slowed the transition to renewables.

While large-scale solar power projects in the Amazon have been initiated before, a lack of planning and adequate training has rendered 80% of systems nonfunctional within five years. Government programs intended to reach off-grid communities lack data on connections and system implementation, making monitoring difficult. Preliminary assessments of programs like Mais Luz para a Amazônia have identified three major opportunities for improvement: 1) create a publicly accessible and consolidated database about electrification rates and socioeconomic characteristics of priority locations, 2) increased public transparency about program monitoring, and 3) replicate existing databases of grid-connected solar chains for off-grid systems, with region-specific information on technical specifications, active businesses, and origins/destinations of equipment.

As of 2023, solar has overtaken wind as Brazil's second largest generation source, behind hydropower which represents 26% of electricity generation. In October 2023, Brazil updated its emissions reduction targets to slash emissions by 48% and 51% by 2025 and 2030, respectively.

Symbolic Importance

The Brazilian Amazon is isolating and environmentally vulnerable, making electricity access and necessary power sector construction difficult. An estimated 425,000 families across Brazil are not connected to the national electrical grid, though experts believe that this figure might actually be higher, given that the last census was in 2010. Another report by the Instituto de Energia e Meio Ambiente estimates that 990,000 people in the Brazilian Amazon lack access to electricity, of which 19% live on Indigenous land. More than 28 million people live in the Northern region of Brazil, a region that has some of the lowest Human Development Indexes, largely due to three challenges: logistics, energy, and communication.

Solar-powered microgrids can help bridge the electrification gap in the Brazilian Amazon. This, in turn, has several benefits (see "Impacts" section), including refrigeration for food and medicine, greater local opportunities for young professionals, and greater access to internet, radio, television, and other tools to connect isolated communities to the world.

Map of the Brazilian legal Amazon and its nine federal states: Acre (AC), Amapá (AP), Amazonas (AM), Maranhão (MA), Mato Grosso (MT), Pará (PA), Rondônia (RO), Roraima (RR) and Tocantins (TO). Source.

Distributed solar generating capacity by state, in gigawatts. Map accurate as of March 2023. Originally published by EIA.

Current Power Generation

Brazil's generation capacity has grown significantly in recent years and reached more than 10 gigawatts in 2022, a tenfold increase from 2019. Solar makes up 2.5% of the country's electricity mix. Unfortunately, only 6% of installed distributed generation is in the Legal Amazon region.

Civil Society Engagement

Fundação Amazônia Sustentável (Foundation for Amazon Sustainability, FAS): FAS aims to advance the "sustainable development of the Amazon through programs and projects in the areas of education and citizenship, health, empowerment, research and innovation, environmental conservation, community infrastructure, entrepreneurship and income generation." Their work has resulted in an average increase of income by 202% and a decrease in deforestation by 40% in FAS service territory. FAS was integral to the installation of solar in the Santa Helena do Inglês village.

WWF Brasil: A member of the WWF Network, WWF-Brazil was founded in 1996 to protect the Brazilian environment. WWF-Brazil helped install solar in Vila Limeira.

Instituto Socioambiental: Since its founding in 1994, Instituto Socioambiental has spearheaded political action across six priority areas to defend the collective rights of Indigenous peoples, traditional populations, and their territories. The six priority areas are Indigenous People, Traditional Communities, Politics and Law, Forest Economy, Threats and Pressure, and Solutions. Instituto Socioambiental is actively working with Xingu Indigenous communities to install solar.

Amazon Conservation Team (ACT): ACT works with Indigenous and local communities in the Amazon to protect ecosystems and preserve and strengthen traditional customs and ways of life. ACT has received philanthropic funding to help increase access to renewable energy in the Amazon (Brazil, Peru, and Colombia), and so far, the team has installed 80 systems.

Projeto Saúde e Alegria (Saúde e Alegria Project): Founded in 1987, the Project aims to increase participation in sustainable community development efforts in the Brazilian Amazon. In doing so, the Project aims to "generate real and lasting benefits in social organization, environment, health, education, economy, culture and inclusion digital, among others, aiming to improve the quality of life and the exercise of citizenship."

Instituto de Energia e Meio Ambiente (Institute for Energy and Environment, IEMA): With a presence across Brazil, the Institute aims to "qualify decision-making processes for transportation and energy systems to ensure sustainable use of natural resources with social and economic development." Their Clean and Inclusive Energy Matrix focus area is envisioned to "promote universal access to electricity and reduce the negative social and environmental impacts from energy system expansion."

Energy and Communities Network: With membership from organizations like IEMA, the Network aims to coordinate members to support sustainable regional development throughout the Amazon. The Network has worked to improve energy auctions in isolated communities and convened more than 800 members to draft recommendations for overcoming energy exclusion in remote areas.

Coordination of the Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB): Founded in 1989, COIAB works to defend the rights of Indigenous Peoples of the Amazon, particularly their right to land, health, education, culture, sustainability, and robust political representation. It operates within a larger network with representation from local associations, regional federations, women's organizations, teachers, and students, and COIAB works closely with the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) and Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin (COICA).

National Coordination of the Articulation of Rural Black Quilombola Communities (CONAQ): CONAQ has seven distinct goals that its work aims to bring about: 1) fight for the guaranteed collective use of Black rural Quilombola community territory; 2) implement sustainable development projects; 3) implement public policies that appropriately account for the existing organization of Quilombo communities; 4) advocate for quality education consistent with Quilombo communities' ways of life; 5) advocate for the autonomy and rights of Quilombola women; 6) encourage the permanence of young people in Quilombo communities; and 7) advocate for sustainable communal use of natural resources, in harmony with the environment.

National Council of Extractivist Populations (CNS): Founded in 1985 to combat deforestation and misappropriation of land, CNS brings representatives from rubbertapping, nut harvesting, açaí collection, Babaçu coconut mashing, and Balata and Piaçaba picking industries. CNS aims to empower young extractive workers to work toward environmental conservation and sustainable development. The organization was founded by Chico Mendes, an activist who advocated for Amazonian conservation and inspired the establishment of policies and programs like the Pilot Program for the Conservation of Brazilian Rainforests and the Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Legal Amazon.

Governmental information

Brazil's current president, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has made halting deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon by 2030 his primary environmental goal, though to achieve this, he has had to make concessions with his politically opposed Congressional majority. For example, Congress approved legislation in 2023 that would shift the responsibility of rural land registration and wastewater management away from the Ministry of Environment, as well as stripping the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples of the power to define Indigenous land areas. In addition, while slowing deforestation is a priority, Lula has backed expanded oil exploration in the country.

Upon taking office, Lula's administration announced significant changes to the structure of the Ministry of Environment. The Ministry will now oversee a Secretariat for Climate Change, a newly-created Department for the Protection of Animal Rights, a Secretariat of Bioeconomy, an Extraordinary Secretariat for the Control of Deforestation, and a new National Climate Security Authority. A new Climate Change Council will be created to support implementation of environmental policy, with council members including Lula and representatives from all government ministries.

The Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica (National Electric Energy Agency, ANEEL) serves as the primary body in Brazil determining regulations for the generation, transmission, distribution, and commercialization of electricity. One challenge identified by OECD is the changing or unclear role that ANEEL may have in regulating renewables, distributed generation, and an increasingly liberalized energy market. While ANEEL has established procedures for garnering public feedback, participation has been lacking. ANEEL's net metering policy allows for a maximum capacity of 5 MW for solar and other qualified renewable energy sources.

Established in 1992, the Ministry of Environment manages six priority areas: 1) national policies for environment and water sources, 2) policies for preserving, conserving, and sustainably using environmental resources, 3) proposing mechanisms and activities that improve environmental quality and sustainability, 4) crafting policies that integrate environmental protections into production and industry, 5) policies and programs to preserve the Amazon, and 6) zoning with the nexus of environment and economic development in mind.

In contrast, the Ministry of Mines and Energy is tasked with nine commitments: 1) improving data related to the mineral economy, 2) responsible growth, 3) expanding geological expertise, 4) growing mining efforts, 5) attracting foreign and domestic investment, 6) governing mining and energy industries, 7) operating with efficiency and accountability, 8) combating illegal and illicit practices, and 9) bringing mining further into society. According to the Ministry, Brazil mines for gold, nuclear ore, niobium, and lithium. Research support is provided to MME by the Empresa de Pesquisa Energética (Energy Research Office, EPE), specifically related to electricity, oil, natural gas and derivative products, and bioenergy.

Related governmental policies, programs, and papers

Government efforts to advance clean energy in Brazil
Government Action	Year	Description
National Programme for Energy Development of States and Municipalities (PRODEEM)	1996	Designed to bring 20,000 MW of renewable energy online to power schools, medical facilities, community centers, and water pump systems throughout the country. By 2000, the program reached 604,000 individuals across 3,050 villages.
Luz no Campo (Light in the Countryside)	2000	Also called the National Rural Electrification Programme or Programa Nacional de Electrificação Rural, Luz no Campo aimed to electrify one million rural homes by 2002. By the end of that year, 480,000 connections were made with 125,000 in progress, though no off-grid connections were made as a result of this program.
Law No. 10,438	2002	Defines access to electricity as a right to all Brazilians, thus paving the way for universalizing programs. The Law also laid the groundwork for creating the PROINFA program described below.
Luz para Todos (Light for Everyone)	2003	Aimed to expand the national grid to support the electrification of 2 million low-income families and reach 95% rural electrification by 2008. The program was supposed to end in 2014 but was extended to 2018, and by its conclusion, the program reached 16.3 million people. Due to the program's success, Brazil established technical exchanges with countries interested in building similar programming, namely Angola, Argentina, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, India, Kenya, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Peru, South Africa, and Zambia.
Programa de Incentivo a Fontes Alternativas de Energia Elétrica (PROINFA)	2004	Incentized usage of electricity from alternative generation sources. By 2018, alternative energy generated 1.8% of Brazil's electricity.
Mais Luz para a Amazônia (More Light for the Amazon)	2020	Program focused on installing solar PV on family homes in the Amazon. So far, the program has installed approximately 8,828 solar units at a total cost of R$508 million reais (USD $98 million). By 2030, program is expected to reach 850,000 individuals.
Ten-Year Expansion Plan for Energy	2021	Prepared annually by the Government of Brazil, this study highlights the outlook for energy expansion so decision-makers may make better-informed plans. The most recent iteration of the plan predicts a 363% growth in distributed generation by 2031.
Law No. 14,300	2022	Establishes the legal framework for Brazil's buildout of microgrids, minigrids, and distributed generation. The framework is called the Sistema de Compensação de Energia Elétrica (Electric Energy Compensation System, SCEE). The framework covers generation with capacities less than 5 MW and introduces a new net metering regime that was implemented beginning in 2023 and extending through 2045.

Currently, there is no national policy dedicated to the energy transition.

Relevant governmental ministries and political coalitions

The Associação Brasileira de Energia Solar Fotovoltaica (Brazilian Solar PV Association, ABSOLAR) was founded in 2013 to convene companies throughout the solar value chain and represent their interests at a national level to advance the industry in Brazil. As of March 2024, ABSOLAR has approximately 550 members including AES Brasil, Clean Energy Latin America (CELA), EcoPower, EDF Renewables, Enel, and Sungrow.

The Associação Brasileira de Distribuidores de Energia Elétrica (Brazilian Association of Electricity Distributors, ABRADEE) provides technical, economic, financial, legal, and institutional support services to 39 electricity distributors, serving 99.6% of Brazil's population. The Association convenes members and advocates on their behalf to granting authorities, regulatory bodies, parliament, media, and other agents working in the electricity sector. Members may be publicly or privately owned and operated.

Case Studies

The following are a few examples of localities where distributed solar has been installed in hard-to-reach Amazonian communities:

Vila Limeira
Vila Limeira was the first remote community in southern Amazonas to achieve 100% solar and 24-hour electricity access. Before the installation of solar, diesel generators provided three hours of electricity per night. Generators required 10 liters of diesel per day (300 liters per month), costing between R$80 to R$120 per family per month. To move the community toward a more sustainable future, the Vila Limeira 100% Solar Project was launched as a joint initiative between the Association of Agroextractivist Producers of the Assembly of God of Vila Limeira (Apavil) and WWF-Brazil. The effort consisted of a 30-kWp mini-grid, a lithium battery pack, and individual meters on all end-use buildings. Community members helped with construction and were trained in basic installation and maintenance, with batteries and generation remotely monitored. The equipment is set to last 15-25 years. As a result of this project, family homes have reliable lighting and educational facilities have greater access to resources.

Vila Restauração
After (re)Energisa constructed a microgrid in Vila Restauração, the 750-person community now has 24-hour electricity access. The microgrid consists of a 325-kW PV installation, 829-kWh lithium battery system, 4G internet, smart metering infrastructure, biogas plants, and two backup generators capable of using locally sourced biodiesel. This represents a significant upgrade from 3 hours to 24 hours of electricity at 60% cost reduction. As part of the project, households are limited to 80 kWh per month. Given that Vila Restauração is one of the most isolated communities in the country, only accessible via a 10-hour boat ride, this is a massive achievement in universal electrification.

Santa Helena do Inglês
The community of 130 residents, which is only accessible by river (3.5 hours), received electricity through the Luz para Todo program, but electricity was intermittent. In 2020, 132 solar panels and 54 batteries were installed in the community for use as the primary electricity source, with diesel generation and the line from Luz para Todos used as backups. The switch away from diesel saves the community approximately 54 liters of fuel and 143 kilograms of carbon dioxide per day. Additionally, significant locations like the local football field are now accessible at night, providing greater opportunities for communal events. The community is comprised of 28 families (~130 residents) and is only accessible by a 3.5-hour boat ride.

Xingu Indigenous Park
The Xingu Indigenous Park is a protected area and location of interest for solar buildout. A $1 million grant from the Mott Foundation is covering the construction of a solar-powered mini-grid in one village, Piyulaga, capable of powering a school, medical and dental clinic, potable water wells, and equipment for agriculture and communications. Initial assessments estimate that R$30,000 per month in federal subsidies coule be injected into the local economy. Community members are being trained in installation and maintenance, and the project aims to scale to 82 other Xingu villages.

Amazonas Renewable Energy Cooperative (CooperSol):
Nearly 40% of locations without grid connections lie in the state of Amazonas. To combat this, in 2021, CooperSol has inaugurated two solar plants which have benefited approximately 100 households. An in-development third plant is intended to support businesses owners that consume between 5,000 and 8,000 reais. Solar plants were financed by cooperative members, who also helped install the panels. Energy generated is "sent to the regional concessionary network, which converts the production into credits and transfers them to the members" who may then reduce their electricity bills by up to 75%.

Communities in the Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve:
Leveraging funding from the National Science Foundation and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, a team of engineers, journalists, and social scientists from Michigan State University sought to construct solar systems in three Amazonian villages through their model called "inclusive engineering." The team aimed to not just increase electricity access, but also understand community values, priorities, and decision-making processes and how they might affect renewables development. Emphasis was placed on training community members with the skills needed for maintaining the systems, as well as not disrupting traditional livelihoods reliant on the river and forest.

Island Communities of the Tocantins River:
The construction of the Tucuruí hydroelectric dam along the Tocantins River displaced approximately 32,000 people, and those who remained were relegated to islands within the floodplain. Community members near the hydroelectric plant, many of whom provided construction labor, do not have access to the electricity generated. In response, between January 2019 and January 2020, more than 1,300 solar panels were installed delivering a total of 1.8 MWp, or enough power to run lights, fridges, and televisions in residential homes, farms, schools, and medical facilities. Public authorities financed up to 85% of installation costs.

Potential Impacts

Fossil Fuel Impacts

Most isolated communities in the Amazon rely on diesel generators to produce a few hours of electricity per day. The electricity generated tends to be intermittent at best, and diesel is both expensive and difficult to transport to the communities that require it. In the absence of diesel, many communities rely on candlelight to complete activities after dark.

Importantly, particulate matter pollution is impacting communities in the Brazilian Amazon more than their counterparts in eastern Brazil. According to the Air Quality Life Index, bringing PM2.5 pollution to World Health Organization Guidelines would increase life expectancy as described in the table below:

Life expectancy changes by state, if PM2.5 pollution decreases to WHO guidelines

State	Life Expectancy Increase (years)
Acre	2.14
Amapá	0.29
Amazonas	1.69
Mato Grosso	1.03
Mato Grosso do Sul	0.70
Pará	0.67
Paraná	0.57
Rondônia	2.31
Roraima	1.14

In addition, diesel and gasoline generators throughout the Brazilian Amazon produce an estimated 3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually.

Potential of Distributed Solar PV in Amazon

Several benefits arise when communities transition from diesel to solar, or when communities have access to reliable electricity for the first time:

• Solar power is quieter, cleaner, and more consistent than diesel generators.
• Distributed solar doesn't require destructive construction of long transmission lines.
• Many isolated communities are particularly vulnerable to illness. Solarizing communities can help limit interactions because fuels no longer need to be purchased.
• Microgrids can improve community resilience as they are more easily repaired than a traditional grid, thus reducing recovery time.
• Electricity access allows for refrigeration (especially for food and vaccines), expanded communications, lighting, use of computers, pumping water, and generating income. Solar-powered wells may also provide water that is safer to drink than that from the river.
• Anecdotal evidence suggests that electricity access can help keep younger community members in the area because more opportunities are available locally.

In addition, several distribution projects have introduced fintech apps for billing that can also provide traditional banking services and lines of credit. Also, projects thus far have often coupled distributed solar with bioenergy, which supports local agriculture and can help address food insecurity.

Challenges: A few challenges have arisen while rolling out distributed solar. First, there is a lack of local skills to support maintaining the systems, a challenge that is amplified by the fact that technical equipment issues are expensive, slow, and difficult to fix. Some groups, like Energisa, are collaborating with communities to train locals on installation and maintenance. Second, solar panels require the mining and purifying of materials, which can degrade the surrounding environment. Third, financing microgrids is considered high-risk because consumer demand is difficult to evaluate, there are few examples to refer to, and each community's specific needs make standardization challenging. Fourth, wet environments like the rainforest can damage batteries, which may not be fully protected in community buildings. Finally, batteries are a necessary component of solar systems and must be manufactured to high standards. Community members in Darora have pointed out that the batteries they were provided broke soon after deployment, rendering their solar panels essentially useless.

Moreover, deploying the number of panels required to achieve the goals outlined in Mais Luz para a Amazônia will create an estimated 71,000 to 237,000 tons of waste. Acre, Amapá and Amazonas would produce the least amount of waste per inhabitant per year, whereas Mato Grosso, Rondônia and Tocantins would generate the most waste per inhabitant. With limited recycling programs in the region, responsible waste management must be included as part of decommissioning planning.

Land availability

Brazilian PV power potential. Originally published by SolarGIS.

The Amazon Rainforest itself presents challenges to renewable buildout, even in the cases of distributed generation. For example, centralized ground-mounted solar requires clearing land, and the dense foliage of the rainforest can block sunlight. Floating PV systems on the river is technically challenging given its fast current. Rooftop generation is commonly deployed in population-dense areas, though studies by the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research indicate that there is sufficient rooftop space in isolated communities to meet electricity demand. However, the materials used for roofs and structures often cannot withstand the extra load (20-25 kg/m2) of typically used solar panels.

In general, approximately 1.8 square meters is required for each 250 W panel. Rooftop solar PV has a high power output relative to its footprint, with studies illustrating that power per square meter may be higher for rooftop than ground-mounted solar or land-based wind.

Supply Chain

An estimated 17.4 GW of solar equipment was imported into Brazil in 2022. Despite demand, only two Brazilian companies are equipped to produce solar products: BYD, a Chinese company with operations in Brazil, and Sengi. Both companies report under-utilization in favor of importing equipment, given the government's zero import tax policy. Brazilian projects have been greatly impacted by global supply chain challenges like inflation and currency fluctuations.

The Mais Luz para a Amazônia program will require between 3 million and 12 million individual pieces of equipment over the systems' life cycles to achieve universal electrification, depending on the types of batteries and proposed kilowatt-hours per month limits.

Employment

One challenge to the widespread deployment of off-grid solar is a lack of local operations and maintenance expertise required to ensure system longevity. With this in mind, many of the examples highlighted above (see "Case Studies") involve training locals to maintain the equipment. For example, Vila Limeira's installation was largely completed by locals who were then trained in basic maintenance. Similarly, 100 individuals in the Xingu Indigenous Park were trained in solar installation and maintenance.

Installation of a solar panel in the village of Pyulaga. Photo by Neal Hegarty and published by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

Finance

Globally, the cost of capital has increased in recent years which has made local currency financing more expensive. This is particularly evident in Brazil and other emerging economies where local currency financing is more prevalent.

Microgrids have an average levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of USD $0.60 per kilowatt-hour. According to Brazil's solar association, ABSOLAR, decreasing costs of solar systems has resulted in returns on investment being delivered to consumers within 5-6 years, down from 10-12 years in 2012.

Public Finance

The Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (Brazilian Development Bank, BNDES) is the primary body financing investments in Brazil, with funds coming from government entities like the National Treasury. Northern Brazil, where many isolated communities reside, receives the greatest amount of funding from BNDES relative to its GDP but the smallest share of disbursements overall. BNDES has recently initiated two efforts to aid in the North's energy transition. In late 2021, the Bank created a partnership with Electrobas to replace diesel with renewable energy generation, and in 2022, the Bank launched a pilot focused on financing solar microgeneration on homes and businesses. Additionally, the Bank has begun offering new lines of credit through the Amazônia Social pilot program, which aims to finance 1,600 solar installations. The Bank provides commercial loans, though projects that are environmental, scientific, technological, social, or cultural do not need to be reimbursed.

Similarly, the Energy Development Account (Conta de Desenvolvimento Energético, CDE) was established in 2002 to finance public policies within Brazil's electricity sector. So far, most CDE funds are used for covering fuel account costs, universalizing electricity services, compensation for subsidies, incentives for renewable and non-polluting energy sources, and management of the Account itself. In 2023, the Account had a 9.4% increase in budget, driven largely by the addition of R$702 million for off-grid generation subsidies.

Brazil's "Luz para Todo" program has a 2024 budget of R$2.5 billion and receives ~72% of its funding from two primary sources: the Reserva Global de Reversão, which uses concessional fees and fines from distribution companies to create loans, and the CDE. Achieving the program's goal of universal electricity access in the Legal Amazon will require an investment of between 7.2 billion-38 billion Brazilian reais.

PRODEEM, one of the earliest renewable energy programs in Brazil, was funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (USD $9 million, including a grant of USD $900,000) and National Treasury Funds (21 million reais). 60 million reais was allocated for programming in 2001. Community systems were auctioned off via tender in 2001, in which the winning bid was 37 million reais.

Public-Private Partnerships

In August 2023, the Ministry of Finance launched the Programa de Aceleração do Crescimento (Growth Acceleration Program, PAC) aimed at encouraging public and private sector investments in infrastructure to create job opportunities and reduce inequalities across Brazilian regions. One of the pillars of this plan includes a green energy transition, though Suely Araújo, senior public-policy specialist at the Climate Observatory argues that its inclusion falls short of a true transition policy since most energy-related investments are expected to go toward oil and gas. When launched, the Program expected investments to reach approximately R$1 trillion in the first four years, with the first tranche of projects totaling R$136 billion.

Philanthropy

The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation has been active in funding programs in the Amazon. For example, the Mott Foundation provided a $7.2 million grant to local non-governmental organizations to increase access to renewable energy in the Legal Amazon. An estimated 64,213 individuals have been reached through this funding.

The National Science Foundation has partnered with the Mott Foundation to provide grant funding for a project to construct solar energy systems for five communities in the Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve of the Pará state, as well as associated research on Convergence Frameworks.

Transmission

Brazil's national transmission grid is called the Sistema Interligado Nacional (National Interconnected System, SIN) and operates in all states except Roraima. In the northern part of Brazil, SIN service is largely relegated to major metropolitan centers, capital cities, and surrounding areas. Where connection may be technically difficult or too costly, isolated systems (Sistemas Isolados, SISOL), which are publicly owned but disconnected from SIN, deliver 1,160 MW of electricity to approximately 3.3 million consumers. 97% of isolated system capacity is generated from diesel.

Brazil is a regional leader with respect to grid investments with one auction seeing record bids totaling USD$8 billion for 10,500 kilometers of transmission infrastructure. China State Grid was the largest auction winner with a bid of USD$3.6 billion to construct 1,513 kilometers of transmission lines.

According to the 2021 Ten-Year Expansion Plan for Energy, several transmission upgrades are expected to enter into operation by December 2026:

Map of Brazil's transmission network. Map by the Operador Nacional do Sistema Elétrico and published by Taesa.

• TL 500kV Xingu - Serra Pelada - Miracema C1/C2
• TL 500kV Serra Pelada - Itacaiúnas C1
• TL 500kV Miracema - Gilbués II C3
• TL 500kV Gilbués II - Barreiras II C2
• TL 230kV Dianópolis - Barreiras II C1
• SE 500 kV Janaúba 3 - Synchronous Compensators - 2 x (-90/+150) Mvar
• LTs 500kV Pirapora 2 – President Juscelino C1/C2
• TL 500kV Presidente Juscelino – Itabira 5 C1/C2
• SE 500 kV Padre Paraíso 2 - Static Compensator 500 kV (-150/+300) Mvar
• TL 500kV Poções III - Padre Paraíso 2 - Governador Valadares 6 C2
• TL 500 kV Governador Valadares 6 - Mutum C2
• TLs 500kV Buritirama - Queimada Nova II - Curral Novo do Piauí II C1
• TL 500kV Gilbués II - Barriers II C2
• TL 500 kV Porto Sergipe – Olindina – Sapeaçu C1
• TL 500kV Sapeaçu – Camaçari IV C1
• TL 500kV Morro do Chapéu - Poções III – Medeiros Neto II – João Neiva 2 C1
• TL 525kV Ivaiporã – Ponta Grossa – Bateias C1/C2
• TL 525 kV Foz do Iguaçu – Guaíra -Sarandi -Londrina C1/C2
• TL 525 kV Areia - Joinville Sul - Itajaí 2 - Biguaçu C1
• New SS 525/230kV Gaspar 2 and other works associated with the electrical service of the State of Santa Catarina: North and Itajaí Valley Regions

Most distribution infrastructure is owned and operated by foreign companies, primarily Ibedrola (Spain) and ENEL (Italy). Finance for distribution averages to $4 billion per year, of which 69% is dedicated to expanding the network, 19% is allocated for improvements and upgrades, and 12% is intended for renewals.

New transmission needed for Solar PV

Mini and microgrids are particularly helpful for isolated communities because they do not require interconnection to the national grid. However, certain communities and small power producers may choose to sell excess power back to the grid. In most countries, the costs of interconnection (including construction and upgrades of transmission lines, substations, and transformers) falls on the project developer. In Brazil, concessionaires are encouraged to develop their own microgrids.

Articles and resources

Related GEM.wiki articles

Energy profile: Brazil
Perfil energético: Brasil
Brazil Atlantic Coast Offshore Wind Development
Latin American groups working on environmental justice