Broader Energy Transitions Event Recap
The Broader Energy Transitions event was held via Zoom and had dozens of attendees. Dr. Thomas van Lanschot, a PhD. in Power Systems with a background in Civil and Energy Engineering, represented Fitch Solutions and led a discussion focused on Brazil’s energy outlook and how it compares to the rest of South America and then the rest of the globe.
Per Fitch Solutions, non-hydro renewables within the Latin America region will be driven by three key markets – Brazil, Chile, and Mexico - accounting for 79% of forecasted growth. However, Brazil outperforms much of the region in non-hydro renewables (wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, etc.) and will single-handedly account for 54% of all growth in the next decade. Additionally, Dr. Lanschot and the team at Fitch Solutions projected “favorable rewards and relatively moderate risks” in the non-hydro renewables markets for Brazil, particularly solar and onshore wind.
Supportive renewables policy in Brazil has driven continued strong growth in solar generation systems as well as utility-scale solar projects. Brazil is also set to see strong growth within the wind power sector because the country’s geography offers so much. The green hydrogen project pipeline across the Latin region stands at just under 8GW as of July 2021 according to Fitch Solutions Data - up from under 2GW within the project pipeline as of March 2021.
During the event Dr. Lanschot also reported data showing that some renewables categories, namely offshore wind, are considered high risk in Brazil. This is because of issues stemming from the complex geology of the country as well as needed infrastructure updates/expansions to transmit any energy produced by offshore wind.
Providing Clients with Valuable Insights
On the Brunel side, the event was spearheaded by Tiago Chaves who is Brunel’s Country Manager in Brazil. Tiago said of the event:
“The Brunel Brazil team felt delighted to host this event, one of our goals is to support our clients in a consultive manner, and a way to do so is by sharing relevant information. Very specific data/insights/forecast about the market our Brazil clients are in were shared by such a knowledgeable and reputable partner, Fitch Solutions. We were also very thankful for the attendance of important clients and relevant players of the Energy sector, represented by professionals that were eager to understand in which direction the Energy Transition in Brazil and South America is moving towards. Nicely done Brunel marketing team, great event!”
This commentary is published by Fitch Solutions Country Risk & Industry Research and is NOT a comment on Fitch Ratings’ Credit Ratings. Any comments or data are solely derived from Fitch Solutions Country Risk & Industry Research and independent sources. Fitch Ratings analysts do not share data or information with Fitch Solutions Country Risk & Industry Research.
