News
26/11/25
Q&A: Brazil miners unite on critical minerals
Sao Paulo, 26 November (Argus) — Eight companies have come together to establish
the Brazilian Critical Minerals Association (AMC), which was officially launched
during an event in Brasilia on 25 November. The association aims to accelerate
the development of Brazil’s high-potential but slowly-progressing critical
minerals market. Argus spoke with Marisa Cesar , president of AMC’s board and
director of government affairs at PLS Brasil — one of the founding companies —
to gain a deeper understanding of the group’s objectives and scope. Edited
highlights follow. Who are the founding companies of the AMC? The eight founding
companies comprise two graphite producers, Graphcoa and Graph+; two nickel
companies, Atlantic Nickel and Centaurus; three rare earth firms, Viridis,
Aclara, and Meteoric; hard-rock lithium miners PLS and Lithium Ionic and the law
firm FBedran. What were the main triggers for the creation of AMC? We started
maturing the idea to create a critical minerals association about five months
ago to unite companies in the critical minerals sector — mostly junior companies
— and to combine efforts and address key challenges in financing, environmental
licensing, and governance. For junior miners, securing funds is extremely
difficult because banks and investment funds demand guarantees that
non-producing companies simply cannot provide. Even projects approved by
[Brazil’s development bank] Bndes often stall because it also needs collateral.
Off-take agreements are one way to unlock financing, but access to domestic
credit, especially through Bndes, remains essential to attract domestic
investment. The second challenge is environmental licensing. The process is
outdated and slow, with approvals sometimes dragging on for years. Companies
that anticipate additional requirements and invest heavily in studies, as PLS
did, can shorten timelines. But this approach is costly and not scalable.
Without clearer, more efficient licensing rules, Brazil risks missing the
critical minerals opportunity it has today. The third issue is governance.
Political and economic instability, combined with fragmented state-level
regulations, makes investors nervous. Whether the uncertainty comes from
domestic politics or geopolitical pressures, it creates risk perceptions that
deter capital. If Brazil wants to position itself as a leading global player in
critical minerals, these structural problems must be addressed. Our mission is
to expedite the development of the critical minerals’ industry in Brazil. How
does AMC plan to differentiate itself from the Brazilian mining institute Ibram?
The AMC was designed to complement, not compete with, Ibram. While Ibram
facilitates general industry-government dialogue, we will look to provide
technical, research-driven support by producing detailed analyses of global
mineral supply chains, mining and processing technologies, investment
environments in other countries, and policy recommendations. We’re working to
show how Australia and Chile, for instance, support mining with specific
incentives, like tax exemptions for 10 years. When the government sees the
competition internationally, they better understand what Brazil needs to do. The
AMC aims to deliver all the groundwork in a structured way, which facilitates
the ministries’ decision-making and accelerates public policies. Ibram does not
have the capacity to do such in-depth research, so that is where we come in.
What are the next steps to consolidate AMC’s work and deliver concrete results,
particularly for small, early-stage companies focused on exploring and
discovering new mineral deposits? AMC continues to work on its three core
fronts: financing, environmental licensing and governance. A key achievement was
securing a seat for AMC, as an institution, in the federal critical minerals
working group , alongside the participating companies. A major priority is
addressing the financing bottleneck affecting junior miners, which struggle to
access capital because of the lack of collateral. To solve this, AMC is
exploring the creation of a “guarantee fund”, possibly combining contributions
from major industry participants, Bndes and financial institutions — national
and international — to share risk. This mechanism would allow junior miners to
raise the capital needed for exploration and project development, including from
foreign investors, who often hesitate due to slow permitting and governance
uncertainties. AMC also engages with the ministry of finance, the treasury, and
other stakeholders to propose policy solutions that facilitate investment. The
association’s approach emphasizes technical documentation, research, and
evidence-based recommendations, ensuring faster government decision-making. What
does AMC aim to achieve in the next 5–10 years? This is the beginning of a long
journey. AMC aims to become a major association with both national and
international representation, positioning Brazil as a global leader in critical
minerals. In five years, we expect AMC to be well-established and fully
operational, and within 1-1.5 years, to have a structured framework for its
activities fully aligned with its mission. Are there any other companies slated
to join the AMC? Yes. Vale Base Metals (copper), CBMM (niobium), Sigma Lithium
and CBL (lithium) are some of the companies that are going over the admission
process. There are also several others at an earlier stage. By Pedro Consoli
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