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The Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira, received this Monday (27) the President of the New Development Bank, Dilma Rousseff, to discuss the expansion of BRICS investments in energy infrastructure in Brazil. The meeting highlighted the 2026 Capacity Reserve Auction, considered the largest generation tender in the country’s history, with the contracting of 19 GW and estimated savings in billions of reais. The meeting reinforces the alignment between the ministry and the BRICS Bank in promoting structuring projects.
The BRICS has just become a central piece in the energy expansion strategy of Brazil. The minister Alexandre Silveira received Dilma Rousseff, who presides over the New Development Bank of the bloc, for a meeting in Brasília that discussed the expansion of investments in energy infrastructure and the strengthening of strategic partnerships. Dilma, who was Minister of Mines and Energy before becoming President of the Republic, led the last major reform of the Brazilian electric sector, which gives the dialogue institutional weight that goes beyond a protocol meeting.
The timing of the meeting is not accidental. Brazil is coming from a cycle of significant results in the energy sector, with the 2026 Capacity Reserve Auction (LRCAP) contracting 19 gigawatts of generation, the largest tender in the country’s history. The estimated savings over the contracts reach billions of reais, and the national electric system gains reliability reinforcement that positions Brazil as an attractive destination for international investments. Silveira wants part of these resources to come precisely from the BRICS Bank, which has a mandate to finance infrastructure in emerging countries.
What Silveira and Dilma discussed in the closed meeting
According to information from TV Brics and Gov, the meeting addressed cooperation opportunities between Brazil and BRICS in projects aimed at expanding energy infrastructure. The discussions included energy transmission, system integration, and solutions that enhance energy security with sustainability, areas where the bloc’s Development Bank can provide long-term financing with more favorable conditions than those of the conventional market.
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Silveira highlighted the regulatory security and predictability environment that Brazil has consolidated in the sector, with advances in conducting structuring auctions that demonstrate institutional capacity to plan and execute large projects. “Receiving President Dilma Rousseff, who has already led the MME and conducted one of the most important sector reforms, is a reaffirmation that Brazil knows how to build state policies”, stated the minister, indicating that the conversation is not about government, but about institutional continuity.
The 19 gigawatts that make Brazil taken seriously by BRICS
The 2026 Capacity Reserve Auction contracted 19 gigawatts of generation, a volume equivalent to the capacity of almost two Itaipu plants and representing the largest tender of its kind ever held in Brazil. The contracting reinforces the National Interconnected System and ensures that the country has enough energy reserve to meet the growing demand in the coming years, reducing the risk of supply crises like those Brazil faced in 2001 and 2021.
For BRICS and its Development Bank, the numbers are a convincing argument. A country that can contract 19 GW in a single auction demonstrates scale, demand, and institutional capacity that justify long-term investments in transmission and generation infrastructure. The Brazilian electric sector offers decades-long contracts with guaranteed revenue, a profile that fits the BRICS Bank’s mandate to finance structuring projects with predictable returns.
Dilma’s role as a bridge between Brazil and the BRICS Bank
Dilma Rousseff holds a unique position in this negotiation. As a former Minister of Mines and Energy and former President of Brazil, she knows the Brazilian electricity sector inside out and now heads the financial institution that can provide the necessary resources for the next phase of expansion. The combination of sectoral experience with financing power makes Dilma an interlocutor that few development bank managers can match.
The New Development Bank of BRICS was created to finance infrastructure and sustainable development in emerging countries, exactly the profile of the projects that Silveira presented at the meeting. The institution has already financed projects in Brazil in areas such as transport and sanitation, and the expansion into the energy sector is a natural development of the bank’s mandate. For Dilma, approving financing that strengthens Brazil’s energy is both an institutional outcome and a personal legacy.
The new cycle of modernization of the Brazilian electricity sector
Silveira stated that the Brazilian electricity sector is undergoing a new cycle of modernization with measures aimed at increasing competitiveness, attracting investments, and ensuring energy security. The minister highlighted that the agenda is aligned with the challenges of energy transition and demand expansion, two factors that require massive investments in renewable generation, energy storage, and modernization of transmission grids.
The global energy transition favors Brazil because the country already has one of the cleanest electricity matrices in the world, with a predominance of hydroelectric, wind, and solar power. Expanding this advantage with BRICS investments in new sources and transmission infrastructure consolidates Brazil as a reference in clean energy and attracts international capital seeking projects with environmental credentials. The Brazilian electricity sector is, in this context, a showcase for the type of investment that the BRICS Bank wants to promote.
What the meeting means for Brazil’s energy future
The meeting between Silveira and Dilma signals that Brazil wants to diversify its financing sources for energy infrastructure, reducing dependence on traditional banks and opening space for BRICS capital that comes with fewer political and economic conditionalities. The alignment between the ministry and the bloc’s Development Bank creates a direct negotiation channel that can accelerate the release of resources for projects awaiting financing.
For the Brazilian consumer, the potential impact is the guarantee that the country will have sufficient energy at competitive prices in the coming decades. The 19 gigawatts contracted are already a milestone, but demand continues to grow with the electrification of transport, the expansion of data centers, and the increase in residential consumption. If BRICS enters as a major financier, Brazil can accelerate the expansion of the electricity sector without compromising the public budget and without relying exclusively on private capital that demands short-term returns.
Do you think Brazil should seek BRICS investments for energy or do you prefer the sector to depend only on private capital and traditional banks? Tell us in the comments what you think about Dilma Rousseff heading the bank that can finance the country’s electricity expansion.
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