27 April 2024
Brazil droughts precipitate rise in gas-to-power
Publication date: 13 March 2015
Gas Strategies Group
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With a population of some 20 million, Sao Paulo is South America’s largest city. It is also Brazil’s economic and industrial engine, accounting for over a third of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and about 40% of heavy industrial activity. Lately, however, it has become more synonymous with Brazil’s descent into drought chaos, with water rationing, emptying reservoirs and blackouts plaguing the southeastern ‘paulista’ state. These trends underscore a wider energy crisis: persistent dry weather has crippled hydropower capacity – the cornerstone of the country’s power generation – with LNG imports acting as an emergency switch to offset shortages in the power sector. With uncertainty remaining over rain patterns in the country, Gas Matters asks: what is the outlook for Brazil’s gas consumption in the years to come?