BONUS EPISODE: The Hidden Challenge Behind Brazil's Energy Boom

This week on Energy Unplugged, Rodrigo Borges, Aurora Energy Research’s Market Lead for Brazil, is joined by Carla Primavera, Deputy Managing Director at BNDES, the Brazilian Development Bank. BNDES has been central to Brazil’s energy transition, financing renewables from early utility-scale wind and solar to the next generation of low-carbon technologies.

Brazil’s power market is entering a new phase. Wind and solar have grown faster than demand and transmission infrastructure, driving curtailment, price volatility, and tougher project economics. Yet long-term demand growth is expected to trigger a substantial new investment cycle.

Rodrigo and Carla discuss how Brazil can move from today’s oversupplied market to the next wave of energy investment, including how lenders are adapting to curtailment, revenue uncertainty, and more sophisticated financing structures.

The discussion also covers grid expansion, storage, and flexibility, with Carla explaining how BNDES is approaching batteries, smart grids, sustainable fuels, low-carbon hydrogen, and why regulation will be key to Brazil’s next phase of growth.

You will learn about:

• Why Brazil’s renewable energy success has led to new challenges around curtailment and price volatility.

• How project finance structures are evolving to address changing market risks.

• What role BNDES is playing in supporting Brazil’s next wave of clean energy investment.

• Why are batteries and other flexibility technologies becoming increasingly important to the power system.
• How Brazil can prepare for a new investment cycle as electricity demand begins to absorb today’s surplus capacity.