Chile Needs US$ 300 Billion in Energy Infrastructure Investments to Support Energy Transition
Brazil
The Brazilian Forest Service held an auction on August 27th for the concession of approximately 267 K hectares of the Balata-Tufari National Forest in the State of Amazonas, Brazil, for sustainable forest management. B2 Comércio e Exportação de Madeiras won two of the three forest management units, while Madeirantes won the third, totaling approximately US$ 3.7 million in initial concession payments. The 37-year contracts foresee approximately US$ 58 million in private investments and the creation of 1.7 K jobs. (Brazilian Forest Service; B3)
The Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation – ICMBio approved the Management Plan for the Chapada do Araripe Environmental Protection Area, which covers more than 1 million hectares across the states of Ceará, Pernambuco and Piauí, Brazil. Approximately 89.9% of the area, or 914 K hectares, was classified as a Production Zone, where farming, livestock and other economic activities are allowed under environmental rules. The plan prohibits, among other measures, aerial spraying of pesticides. According to ICMBio, the zoning does not authorize deforestation or unrestricted agribusiness expansion, but rather organizes activities already carried out in the area. (ICMBio)
AGCO Agriculture Foundation and The Nature Conservancy support 30 farmers across more than 40 K hectares in the Cerrado Biome in the State of Mato Grosso, Brazil, through degraded pasture recovery, native vegetation restoration and regenerative agriculture. Sustainable practices were directly implemented across 11 K hectares. Among farms monitored by the project, one recorded a 27% increase in milk productivity, while another more than doubled its livestock stocking rate. (AGCO; TNC Brasil)
Amazon Fund will provide US$ 6.7 million to the Amazônia Agroecológica project, supporting sustainable production, forest conservation and income generation in the States of Pará and Mato Grosso. The four-year initiative is expected to reach 2.6 K families across 57 municipalities. (BNDES; FASE)
Brazilian Biogas and Biomethane Association projects investments of US$ 42 billion from the private sector in Brazil until 2035, conditioned on regulatory advances and incentives. The Plan estimates 251 K direct jobs and emissions reductions of more than 230 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per year. (Brazilian Biogas and Biomethane Association; XP)
The State of Pará, Brazil, has individually identified approximately 423 K cattle and buffaloes, less than 2% of its total herd, since its traceability program began in 2024. The original target required all animals in transit to be individually identified by the end of 2025, but the deadline was extended to 2030. The system aims to strengthen sanitary controls and verify animal origin, including reducing the risk of cattle linked to deforested areas entering the supply chain. (Adepará)
Brazil’s National Council of Export Processing Zones approved five projects totaling approximately US$ 40 billion in investments in the States of Ceará, Maranhão and Piauí, including low-carbon initiatives. Projects include an approximately US$ 525 million biorefinery to produce second-generation ethanol from bamboo, as well as green hydrogen, e-methanol, green HBI and low-carbon pig iron projects. The package also includes an approximately US$ 35 billion data center. The government estimates approximately US$ 7.8 billion in additional annual exports from 2029. (CZPE; MDIC)
The Brazilian National Land Transport Agency created a voluntary ESG certification for registered road freight carriers. Evaluation will cover emissions and environmental impact reductions, working conditions and regulatory compliance. The certification will have an exclusively incentive-based purpose, with participation and evaluation rules to be detailed in specific calls. (ANTT)
Sabesp, a sanitation company in Brazil, launched an approximately US$ 34.6 million debenture offering to finance wastewater management projects under the Eco Invest Brasil program. The funds are for the construction, expansion and modernization of water and sewage systems. (CVM)
Brazil presented a voluntary target to recover or restore more than 163 thousand km², equivalent to 16.3 million hectares, of degraded land by 2030. Announced at the UN Convention to Combat Desertification COP17, the commitment consolidates 17 sub-targets linked to national policies and programs. (MMA)
Unilever expanded an agreement with Edge to fully supply the deodorant factory in Aguaí, State of São Paulo, with biomethane. The 1.125 K m³/day contract is expected to avoid more than 700 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually. The fuel will come from Onebio, an approximately US$ 87.5 million biomethane purification plant owned by a joint venture between Edge, with a 51% stake, and Orizon, with 49%. (Unilever; Edge; BNDES)
The 4th Brazilian Climate and Carbon Conference is being held on August 27th and 28th in São Paulo as Brazil advances regulation of the Brazilian Emissions Trading System. Companies, investors and the government are discussing carbon-credit integrity, climate finance, reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+), carbon removals, regenerative agriculture and Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. (Brazil NBS Alliance)
Ferro+, a mining company controlled by Grupo J. Mendes, will provide approximately US$ 5.8 million for projects in the city of Congonhas, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The package includes sanitation, urban improvements and a scientific observatory. The municipality also began creating a 207-hectare protected area in Serra do Pires. (Government of Congonhas)
Neoenergia reported investments in AI of approximately US$ 5.8 million in 2026 and expanded the use of weather-data models to anticipate failures and mitigate impacts from extreme weather events, including El Niño, in Brazil. The company has digitalized 80% of the high- and medium-voltage networks. (Neoenergia)
Imazon reported that deforestation in the Amazon fell 23% between August 2025 and July 2026, to 2.7 K km², the lowest area recorded in the past 11 monitoring years. Forest degradation fell 93% to 2.6 K km². Indigenous lands accounted for only 1.7% of total deforestation and almost 60% of these territories recorded zero deforestation. (Imazon)
Cetric started construction on August 27th of an approximately US$ 5.8 million facility to convert waste into biogas and biomethane in Umuarama, State of Paraná, Brazil. The plant will process waste from industries, slaughterhouses and agribusiness and is expected to initially produce 20 K m³/day of biomethane, enough to supply up to 300 trucks. Total investment in the project could reach approximately US$ 23 million. (Cetric; Government of Umuarama)
Brazil’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and BNDES extended until September 30th the deadline for the Restaura Rio Doce program, which provides up to approximately US$ 120 million to restore 12.5 K hectares in the Rio Doce Basin. Projects may include native vegetation restoration, agroforestry systems, native-species forestry and soil and water conservation practices. (Ministry of Environment and Climate Change; BNDES)
Brazil’s National Land Transport Agency expanded the Infrastructure Sustainability Program on August 27th, allowing new federal highway and railway concessionaires to apply at any time. Eligible companies may access tax-incentivized infrastructure debentures to finance environmental practices, including climate-change adaptation and emissions reductions. (ANTT)
Latin America
Ganfeng agreed to invest US$ 180 million in Lithium Argentina through a six-year convertible note, after the companies signed definitive agreements to form a joint venture combining three lithium projects in Salta, Argentina. The development targets an annual capacity of 150 K tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent. The companies have already invested US$ 1.8 billion in asset acquisition and development. Closing of the transactions is expected in September 2026. (Lithium Argentina)
Codelco presented a US$ 16 million project in Chile to remediate a 4.8-hectare site formerly occupied by fuel facilities in Antofagasta. The plan includes removing 28.55 K m³ of soil contaminated by arsenic, copper and lead and treating groundwater. The project is under environmental evaluation. (SEA; Codelco)
Central Cardones submitted a US$ 125 million project in Chile combining 120 battery-storage units with an extension of diesel-fired power generation through 2049. The proposal entered environmental evaluation on August 21st and highlights the coexistence of clean technologies and fossil-fuel generation during the energy transition. (SEA)
The Environmental Agency of Chile reported that 11 projects representing more than US$ 5.2 billion in investments received environmental approval in the Valparaíso Region since March 11th. Another US$ 3 billion in projects is under evaluation in the region, including a US$ 400 million desalination plant, a US$ 350 million solar park and a US$ 300 million battery-storage system. (SEA)
The Infrastructure Policy Council estimates Chile will need approximately US$ 300 billion in energy infrastructure investments over the next 25 years to support energy transition. The study points to the need to expand transmission and distribution networks, electrification and clean-energy generation, as well as natural gas infrastructure for activities that are difficult to electrify. (CPI)
Government of Chile and Quiborax signed an agreement for a US$ 70 million project to recover lithium from historical mining waste at the El Águila plant. The project targets up to 20 K tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent and does not include salt-flat exploration or new mining extraction. (Ministry of Mining)
CAF and BBVA Colombia expanded to US$ 200 million a credit line for sustainability, agricultural exports and reconstruction in Colombia. Of the total, US$ 41 million will finance post-earthquake recovery, while the facility will also support biodiversity, sustainable agroindustrial development and agricultural exporters. (CAF; BBVA)
Itaipu Binacional, that operates the Itaipu hydropower plant on the Brazil–Paraguay border, reported on August 21st that it had concluded a technical agenda with the Smithsonian Institution focused on biodiversity conservation and forest restoration in Paraguay. Cooperation includes experimental restoration areas, while the Itaipu Preserva program has approximately 3 K hectares undergoing restoration. The company’s forest nursery produces an average of 110 K seedlings per month for environmental projects. (Itaipu)
Rio2, a Canadian mining company, received environmental approval to expand processing capacity at the Condestable underground copper mine in Peru from 8.4 K to 10 K tonnes/day. The permit also authorizes a dry-stack tailings facility with initial capacity of 43 million tonnes and extends the environmentally approved mine life by ten years. A final investment decision is expected in the 2H26. (Rio2)
Prosegur and Prosegur Cash selected a REDD+ project in Peru for their 2026 emissions-offsetting plan. The initiative generates carbon credits through forest conservation and the reduction of deforestation and forest degradation. The project protects more than 724 K hectares of the Peruvian Amazon and is expected to avoid 2.09 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per year, benefiting 793 families. The companies did not disclose the number of credits purchased or the transaction value. (Prosegur)
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