Council linked to the Executive will be able to analyze and block mergers, acquisitions and agreements with foreigners in the name of national sovereignty
The opinion presented this Monday (May 4, 2026) by the rapporteur of the which creates the new Critical Minerals Framework, (Cidadania-SP), establishes the creation of a council that will be responsible for granting approval to exports of critical minerals and responsible for vetoing or not vetoing international agreements in the sector that could affect the country’s security. The project will be voted on on Tuesday or Wednesday in the Chamber plenary.
According to the document, the CMCE (Special Council for Critical Minerals) will also be responsible for defining the list of minerals considered “critical and strategic” – the list will be reviewed every 4 years. The central objective is to ensure that Brazil not only extracts mineral wealth, but internalizes stages of the production chain, such as mineral processing and transformation.
The congressman states that the council will be responsible for establishing the criteria used for decision-making.
“The premises are established in the legislation: national sovereignty, public interest. And the council will grade this and analyze it case by case”, these.
The rapporteur cited as examples the national policy on critical minerals in other countries, such as the United States, Canada and Chile. He argued that control of this sector is also necessary in liberal economies. “I could cite about 15 examples of comparative legislation that we have in other countries”, he stated.
Traceability and incentives
The rapporteur also included traceability mechanisms to identify from the origin to the final destination of the goods, in addition to encouraging the call “urban mining” –recovery of minerals contained in electronic waste, batteries and end-of-life vehicles.
The opinion authorizes the Union to create the Mineral Activity Guarantee Fund, with public contributions of up to R$2 billion to cover credit risks and unlock investments. BNDES calculates that the amount needed for projects in the sector is around R$5 billion.
In return for the incentives, companies will be required to invest in Research and Development. In the first 6 years, the text determines the investment of 0.3% of gross revenue in innovation and 0.2% in the payment of shares of the fund itself. After this period, the minimum investment in technology increases to 0.5%.
In addition to industrial promotion, the opinion brings socio-environmental requirements for companies to access incentives, including the hiring of local labor, transparent dialogue with communities and the adoption of the best global dam safety practices. The text also creates the Low Carbon Mineral Certificate, which aims to value production with less environmental impact.
In exchange, companies, in addition to tax credits, will be able to issue debt securities (debentures) with advantages and participate in special regimes (in this case, the Special Incentive Regime for Infrastructure Development) that facilitate the construction of infrastructure works.
