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The Brazilian government is in talks with the US, Russia and China to facilitate the production of small nuclear reactors to generate energy in the country. The objective, led by the Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira, is to create a national policy to expand uranium exploration and modernize the nuclear sector, in line with the energy transition. The report is from O Globo.
Over the past four months, technicians from the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) have been studying the issue of nuclear reactors, and the policy is scheduled to be launched in early 2024. The project's points include the modernization of the Angra 1 plant, the completion of Angra 3, and the strengthening of uranium mining. Currently, the Brazil has the world's sixth largest uranium reserves, but only 30% of the territory has been prospected.
Strategic partnerships with the US, Russia and China for nuclear reactors
To make the implementation of small nuclear reactors to generate energy viable, the government is seeking technology transfer agreements with global powers. Executives from Rosatom, a Russian state corporation, have meetings scheduled with the MME on Monday. Negotiations are also progressing with the US and China, which may collaborate to attract investment and facilitate the production of these reactors in Brazil.
The international agenda also included discussions during President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's visit to Russia, in a meeting with Vladimir Putin. However, the trip was postponed due to a domestic accident involving Lula.
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The central idea is for Brazil to become independent in the production of small nuclear reactors, opening up ways to attract energy-intensive operations, such as new data centers.
Uranium exploration and nuclear chain
A new government policy aims to intensify uranium exploration in Brazil, a resource considered underutilized. In Santa Quitéria (MG), for example, the state-owned Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil (INB) is awaiting authorization from Ibama to begin exploring one of the largest reserves in the country, with the capacity to produce up to 2 tons per year and feed small nuclear reactors.
By law, uranium mining is a federal monopoly, and advances in mining depend on the expansion of INB's operations. The resumption of mining in December 2020 at Mina do Engenho, in Caetité (BA), already represented an important step for the Brazilian nuclear chain.
Clean and sustainable energy
The investment in nuclear reactors to generate energy is in line with the energy transition, since nuclear generation is a clean source, with no emissions of polluting gases. The government wants to structure the entire nuclear chain, from intensifying studies on local reserves to the production of small reactors, consolidating Brazil as a global reference in the sector.
The initiative promises not only to diversify the energy matrix, but also to consolidate the country as one of the largest uranium producers in the world, strengthening the economy and opening new technological frontiers.
