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Brazil's battery makers push for support to avoid domination by imports, sources say
Brazil's battery makers push for support to avoid domination by imports, sources say
About this update from Axia Energia Sa
By Leticia FucuchimaBrazilian battery manufacturers, including WEG BMFBOVESPA:WEGE3, Moura and UCB Power, have asked the government to create incentives for the use of locally made products in the country's first auction for battery energy storage, seeking to prevent imports from fully meeting demand, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.The proposals range from reserving part of the auction for domestically produced batteries, without direct import competition, to incentives through scoring criteria and financing from state development bank BNDES, the sources said.The aim is to secure orders for Brazil's emerging battery energy storage systems (BESS) industry and curb domination by imports, particularly from China, where oversupply has pushed prices down sharply."Competing fully on equal terms, as in a standard auction, it is very likely we would lose everything," one domestic industry executive said, speaking on condition of anonymity.The auction, expected this year, has drawn interest from utilities such as Axia BMFBOVESPA:AXIA3, Engie BMFBOVESPA:EGIE3 and ISA Energia BMFBOVESPA:ISAE3, as well as global suppliers including China's BYD SZSE:002594, Huawei [RIC:RIC:HWT.UL], CATL and U.S.-based Tesla NASDAQ:TSLA.Sources said the national BESS industry would still rely on imported battery cells, but could produce locally other components, such as battery packs, software, inverters and infrastructure.Moura and UCB said separately they are contributing to the debate and that strengthening the domestic industry could support Brazil's development through job creation and technological innovation. WEG declined to comment.The Ministry of Development, Industry and Trade said it is studying local content rules for the auction and that details are still under discussion.The Ministry of Mines and Energy did not respond to requests for comment.