With Brazil on the rise as a global power it has found a strong ally in the energy sector in the form of the USA.
Following President Obama’s official visit to Brazil an agreement to launch a strategic energy dialogue was confirmed between the two countries.
Brazil has found favour after the oil reserves it found off its shores were thought to amount to twice the reserves in the whole of the United States, making it a major player on the world stage.
Obama commented that the US now wants to work with Brazil and help with technology and support to develop these oil reserves safely. However, he was keen to point out that while the focus is on oil in the near term, in the long term clean energy technology is vital and that is why the US and Brazil will deepen their co-operation on biofuels and why a US-Brazil Green Economy Partnership has been established.
Currently, more than half of the vehicles in Brazil run on biofuels and nearly 80 per cent of the country’s electricity comes from hydro power. In the US, meanwhile, it is hoped that the country will soon have the capacity to produce around 40 per cent of the world’s advanced batteries; and so sharing these technologies could help both economies grow.
Brazil and the US actually signed a memorandum of understanding back in 2007 to advance co-operation on biofuels and this will now include a new partnership for the development of aviation biofuels.
