By Brazil Stock Guide – Brazil’s government is stepping up talks with China over nuclear cooperation as it explores the development and application of small modular reactors (SMRs) as part of a broader effort to diversify its energy mix and strengthen long-term supply security.
The initiative gained momentum this week after Mines and Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira met executives from China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) in Shanghai, including the group’s chief economist Mingang Huang.
Silveira told CNNC representatives that SMRs are viewed by Brasília as a strategic technology capable of delivering firm, predictable power while supporting industrial uses such as process heat, desalination and other energy-intensive value chains. The minister framed the discussions as part of Brazil’s transition toward low-carbon sources without sacrificing grid reliability, particularly as electricity demand from industry and infrastructure rises.
Beyond SMRs, Silveira used the meeting to underline the need for a broader overhaul of Brazil’s nuclear sector. He said the privatization of Eletrobras under the previous administration weakened coordination across nuclear policy, fragmenting governance and leaving investments misaligned with long-term planning. According to the minister, capital spending and hiring decisions were taken without clarity on the sector’s future or on the completion of the Angra 3 nuclear plant, raising costs and uncertainty.
The current government, Silveira said, is now restructuring the nuclear complex with an emphasis on governance, economic discipline and institutional coherence. A central pillar of that effort is designing technical, regulatory and financial solutions to move Angra 3 forward, which the administration continues to classify as strategic for national energy security.
Silveira also highlighted Brazil’s upstream potential. Despite having mapped only about 30% of its subsoil, the country already holds the world’s seventh-largest uranium reserves, giving it a solid base to attract new investment in mineral research, fuel production and equipment manufacturing. Expanding geological mapping and prospecting, he said, will be decisive in unlocking that potential—positioning nuclear power, alongside renewables, as a more prominent pillar of Brazil’s long-term energy strategy.