Mining and strategic minerals: where the public money is

Public credit

• BNDES Finem - Environment - Critical and Strategic Minerals: support for critical and strategic mineral projects and for the development of materials that contribute to the energy transition and decarbonization, covering investments in mineral exploration and research, feasibility and engineering studies, mining, processing, refining, mineral transformation, and the manufacture of strategic inputs used in batteries, electric motors, electrified vehicles and other low-carbon technologies.
• Fundo Clima - Green Industry: the Fundo Clima modality that covers processing, refining and transformation of critical and strategic minerals used in batteries, electric motors and electrified vehicles - see the Fundo Clima page (in Portuguese). Direct operations carry a high minimum financing amount: not a typical line for a small mining company.
• Other BNDES lines applicable to mineral projects are in the full BNDES Navigator sweep (page in Portuguese).

Equity fund - capital, not a loan

• FIP Strategic Minerals: an equity investment fund of up to R$ 1 billion launched by the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) and BNDES for strategic-mineral projects for the energy transition, with a manager selected through a public call (Ore Investments and JGP BB Asset consortium, October/2024). This is fund capital, subject to selection - not a loan and not an automatic benefit.

Research, development and innovation

• Finep: support for mineral research, processing and mining technologies, under the agency's own modalities;
• FNDCT: the sectoral science and technology fund, according to current application plans;
• EMBRAPII: applied-innovation projects with accredited units, with company counterpart funding;
• Lei do Bem: eligible R&D for companies under the Real Profit regime - requirements on the Lei do Bem page (in Portuguese).

Minerals highlighted in public policies

• Lithium, rare earths, nickel, cobalt, graphite, copper, manganese, niobium, silicon, phosphate and potash;
• Uranium is subject to a specific legal regime; iron, bauxite and gold follow the general rules of each instrument.

Eligible activities, depending on the instrument

• Mineral research and prospecting, geological studies and mine deployment;
• Processing, refining and mineral transformation, battery materials and components for electric motors;
• Tailings recovery, automation, reduced water and energy consumption, and environmental recovery.

Sources

BNDES Financing Navigator; MME - launch of the R$ 1 billion fund for strategic minerals (2024); BNDES News Agency - schedule (March 6, 2024) and selected manager (October 2, 2024); ANM - critical and strategic minerals. All checked on February 11, 2026. Final conditions depend on each instrument's rules.