The governments of Brazil and the United Kingdom have initiated cooperative actions for joint industry decarbonization policies, which is considered fundamental for protecting the environment. The partnership seeks to enable the transition to clean energy with strategic minerals and low-carbon hydrogen, for example. 
The cooperation structure between the two countries was called “decarbonization hub”. This joint action was celebrated at COP29which took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, in November, and should be the reason for new discussions at COP30, in Belém (PA), next year.
According to economist Clovis Zapata, representative of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in Brazil, the main challenge for the decarbonization of industry in Brazil would be the development of business models capable of disseminating low-carbon technologies combined with growth economic.
“Including segments whose own industrial process may be difficult to decarbonize (such as steel, cement and petrochemicals)”, he stated in an interview with Brazil Agency.
Investment
An important point would be the need, brought by the Brazilian industrial sector, to further facilitate investments in decarbonization and sustainable modernization of infrastructure. The partnership between governments aims to attract national and international technical and financial resources for decarbonization projects and public policies.
“The United Kingdom contributes climate financing, expertise in innovative technologies and experience in public policies aimed at decarbonization,” said Zapata.
Brazil as a reference
According to the Unidos representative, this collaboration between Europeans complements already recognized Brazilian initiatives in the development and use of renewable energy and biofuels.
In these sectors, for the economist, Brazil would be a global reference. “Together, the two countries can create a mutually beneficial environment of bilateral cooperation that promotes innovative and globally replicable solutions, serving as a reference, especially for other countries in the Global South with similar development to Brazil”, he explained.
UK support for Brazil would include financial investments with the participation of governments, companies, funds, financial institutions and international organizations.
The representative of Unidos says that the Industrial Decarbonization Hub is already in operation with public calls opened by the UN entity itself for the development of projects and studies in strategic segments.
Check out the terms of agreement between Brazil and the United Kingdom.
Descartes
Another challenge is that the potential problems of disposing of technologies that are used to implement clean energy, such as solar and wind, draw the attention of the international community.
The Unidos representative assured that there are already international partners with projects for the collection and adequate treatment of products at the end of their life cycle. “Both the United Kingdom and the European Union have advanced legislation for these products at the end of their life cycle, and comprehensive collection and treatment systems, which include decontamination and recycling.” The idea is that, in 2025, there will also be a cooperation project in Brazil with the federal government to improve the treatment and recycling system for critical materials and metals.
