REM: EU to invest $2.16bn in green hydrogen in Brazil

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced that the EU will invest €2bn ($2.16bn) in green hydrogen and energy efficiency in Brazil.

Von der Leyen was visiting Brazil in the hopes of finalising a long-delayed trade deal with the South American country and some of its neighbours. Concerns about Amazonian deforestation have contributed to the delay of the deal with the Mercosur bloc.

The EC president told her host, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, that the EU will unblock funding to help protect the Amazon.

Von der Leyen said: “Brazil is … a superpower in renewable energy. You are producing 87% of your electricity from renewable sources. If you take the overall energy, it is 50%. This is truly impressive and we can learn a lot from you. I am very pleased that we are launching today another Global Gateway flagship project. This is on hydrogen. With this, Europe will invest €2bn to support Brazil's production of green hydrogen and to promote energy efficiency in your industry.”

Hydro power is Brazil’s largest source of renewable energy.

Of the Amazon, she said: “We discussed the Amazon forest that is a wonder of nature. It is the green lung of our planet. And it is a key ally against global warming. We want to contribute €20mn to the Amazon Fund. Of course, our member states will also contribute.”

Pointedly, she continued: “We discussed your plan to end deforestation by 2030. This is great news for the world. And Europe is also your partner in this. Here too, we would like to support you because you have a big responsibility in stopping deforestation in the rainforest. So we want to support you with Global Gateway. We have a project together of €430mn to fight deforestation and to indeed promote, which is so important, sustainable land use in the Amazon.”

She added: “I very much welcome Brazil's bid to host COP30 in Belém. It will be a powerful message to bring the climate conference to the mouth of the Amazon.”

Relations between Brazil and the 27-member EU had soured under Lula’s predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, partly because of Bolsonaro’s dire record on Amazonian deforestation and also because of the prospects of cheap imports to the EU from Mercosur, which consists of Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina.