Every turn of a wind turbine, every spin of an electric motor and every buzz of a smartphone in a pocket depends on elements few people can name: neodymium, dysprosium, cerium, lanthanum. They are 17 minerals grouped under the label of rare earths, and a large share of them sits under Brazilian soil, waiting for an industry able to mine and refine them. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Brazil holds about 21 million tonnes of these reserves, the world's second largest, behind only China. The country now wants to turn that geological inheritance into business.
The push follows a decision in Brasília. Last week Congress completed approval of the National Policy for Critical and Strategic Minerals, with the Senate voting on Wednesday (2); the bill now awaits President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's signature. As reported by G1, Globo's news portal, the law creates a guarantee fund of up to R$ 5 billion to unlock mining projects, in which the federal government may invest up to R$ 2 billion as a shareholder, plus R$ 5 billion in tax credits, paid in annual instalments of R$ 1 billion between 2030 and 2034, for companies that process critical minerals on Brazilian soil. The law also creates a council under the Presidency that will define the list of minerals deemed critical, to be revised every four years.
From raw ore to magnets
The incentive works as a ladder: the further a company climbs from raw rock, the bigger the benefit. Only firms incorporated under Brazilian law, with headquarters and administration in the country, qualify. The list of eligible products runs from concentrates and battery-grade inputs to oxides and alloys for the permanent magnets used in electric motors, along with fertilizers and energy storage systems.
The climb is the whole point. A study by CGEE, a research center linked to the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, shows China concentrates about 90% of global refining and permanent magnet output. At the end of the chain, a neodymium-iron-boron magnet can cost up to 26,000 times the price of the mixed concentrate, which trades between US$ 15 and US$ 30. Brazil today exports much of its ore as a raw commodity, without added value.
"We missed the train. If we had started executing what was proposed back then, we would be 30%, 40% ahead of where we are," Anderson Gomes, president of CGEE, told the Tilt column of UOL, as the center updated in July a study it had first produced in 2012. The new roadmap sets three horizons: first separation and refining plants by 2030, scaled production of metals and alloys by 2035, permanent magnets made in Brazil by 2040. Luís Manuel Fernandes, executive secretary of the ministry, summarized the government's line: build productive chains at home rather than pocket short-term gains from ore exports.
Urgency has a geopolitical reason. Brazil's reserves have drawn the attention of US President Donald Trump in his standoff with China over critical minerals, and the theme has entered the presidential campaign, with Senator Flávio Bolsonaro pitching the country as an alternative source for Washington. Back to the reader holding a phone: the magnet that makes it vibrate most likely left a Chinese factory, since China makes roughly 90% of the world's magnets. Brazil's bet is that, in 15 years, part of that story can have a different origin.