China controls the world's largest rare earth reserves and dominates the processing technology
Em um momento em que o controle sobre os minerais críticos define o contorno das próximas décadas, os Estados Unidos estenderam a mão ao Brasil com uma proposta concreta: um grupo de trabalho trilateral para canalizar capital americano à extração e ao processamento de terras raras, lítio e nióbio. O encontro em Salvador entre o encarregado de negócios Gabriel Escobar e o presidente da Ibram, Raul Jungmann, não foi um gesto protocolar — foi um movimento estratégico numa competição silenciosa, mas intensa, com a China pelo domínio das cadeias de suprimento da transição energética. O Brasil, detentor das segundas ou terceiras maiores reservas de terras raras do mundo, encontra-se agora no centro de uma disputa que moldará a geopolítica tecnológica do século.
- A corrida global pelos minerais da transição energética chegou ao Brasil com urgência diplomática: Washington quer acordos, e quer logo.
- A China domina não apenas as reservas mundiais de terras raras, mas sobretudo o processamento — e os Estados Unidos buscam no Brasil uma alternativa estratégica para reduzir essa dependência.
- A Ibram aceitou a proposta e já sonda entre seus associados quais projetos poderiam atrair capital americano via instituições de desenvolvimento dos EUA, mas a adesão formal do governo brasileiro ainda está em negociação.
- Em dezembro, executivos brasileiros do setor mineral viajarão aos Estados Unidos para transformar conversas em acordos concretos, seguindo o modelo já consolidado entre Washington e Canberra.
- O ministro de Minas e Energia, Alexandre Silveira, foi convocado para discutir a proposta no dia seguinte ao encontro, sinalizando que a engrenagem institucional já está em movimento.
Gabriel Escobar, o principal diplomata americano no Brasil, reuniu-se nesta semana em Salvador com Raul Jungmann, presidente da Ibram e ex-ministro da Defesa, para propor a criação de um grupo de trabalho trilateral — envolvendo os governos dos dois países e a indústria mineradora brasileira — voltado a atrair investimentos americanos na produção de minerais críticos como lítio, nióbio e terras raras. O encontro ocorreu durante evento da Ibram, e Jungmann aceitou a iniciativa. A participação formal do governo brasileiro, porém, ainda está sendo negociada.
O pano de fundo é a disputa geopolítica entre Estados Unidos e China pelo controle das cadeias de suprimento da transição energética. A China lidera tanto em reservas quanto, decisivamente, no processamento de terras raras — o gargalo real da cadeia produtiva. O Brasil ocupa a segunda ou terceira posição mundial em reservas, tornando-se um parceiro estratégico de primeira ordem para Washington, que em seu segundo mandato sob Trump elegeu a segurança no fornecimento desses materiais como prioridade.
Escobar já havia sinalizado esse interesse em julho, e as recentes reuniões entre Lula e Trump teriam, segundo ele, preparado o terreno diplomático para avançar. A Ibram, otimista, já prospecta entre seus associados oportunidades de investimento que possam ser financiadas por instituições americanas de desenvolvimento. O modelo de referência é a parceria já existente entre EUA e Austrália.
Em dezembro, uma delegação de empresários e autoridades brasileiras viajará aos Estados Unidos para um encontro organizado pela embaixada, com o objetivo de converter a proposta em acordos concretos. O ministro Alexandre Silveira foi chamado a discutir a iniciativa no dia seguinte ao encontro em Salvador. O que começou como uma abertura diplomática ganha, rapidamente, a forma de uma nova arquitetura de fornecimento — construída sobre os minerais que alimentarão o mundo nas próximas décadas.
Gabriel Escobar, the top American diplomat in Brazil, sat down this week with Raul Jungmann, the head of Brazil's mining industry association and a former defense minister, to float an idea: what if the United States, Brazilian mining companies, and the Brazilian government formed a working group to talk about funneling American capital into critical minerals production here?
The proposal came Tuesday in Salvador at an event hosted by the Instituto Brasileiro de Mineração, or Ibram, the industry's main representative body. Escobar, serving as chargé d'affaires at the embassy, was direct about what Washington wanted to discuss—American investments in projects that would extract and process minerals the world now desperately needs: lithium, niobium, rare earths. Jungmann said yes. The Brazilian government's participation, though, is still being negotiated.
This is not a casual conversation. The minerals in question are the sinews of the energy transition. Rare earths go into batteries, wind turbines, LED screens. They are also, increasingly, a flashpoint in the long competition between the United States and China for technological dominance. China controls the world's largest rare earth reserves and, more importantly, dominates the processing technology that turns raw ore into usable material. Brazil sits on the world's second or third-largest deposit, depending on which estimates you trust. The Trump administration, now in its second term, has made securing a reliable long-term supply of these materials a priority.
Escobar had already signaled this interest back in July, when he told Jungmann that Washington wanted deals. The message was consistent: the Trump government sees opportunity in Brazil's mineral wealth and wants to lock in partnerships. The recent meetings between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and President Donald Trump, Escobar suggested, had cleared the diplomatic ground for this kind of arrangement to move forward.
The Ibram accepted the proposal and said it would begin prospecting among its member companies for investment opportunities that could draw American capital through U.S. development institutions. Jungmann, in a statement, called himself optimistic about the initiative, predicting it would bring substantial investment and create jobs across mining-related supply chains. He also noted that Escobar had reiterated Washington's interest in partnerships around critical minerals—specifically rare earths—for infrastructure, energy, and defense.
The model already exists. The United States has a similar arrangement with Australia, one that has strengthened Australian supply chains with American money while reducing dependence on China. Ibram sees the same potential here. In December, American officials and business representatives will travel to the United States to meet with Brazilian mining executives, a gathering the embassy is organizing. The goal is to move from conversation to concrete agreements.
The Energy and Mines Minister, Alexandre Silveira, was scheduled to meet with Jungmann on Wednesday in Salvador to discuss Escobar's proposal. The U.S. Embassy, when asked for comment, offered nothing for publication. But the machinery is already turning. What began as a diplomatic overture is becoming the architecture of a new supply relationship, one that reflects the world's scramble for the materials that will power the next fifty years.
Notable Quotes
This proposal will attract substantial investment and strengthen mining-related supply chains and employment— Raul Jungmann, Ibram president
The Trump government is interested in partnerships with Brazil on critical minerals for infrastructure, energy, and defense— Gabriel Escobar, U.S. chargé d'affaires, as relayed by Jungmann
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does the Trump administration care so much about where Brazil gets its minerals processed? Can't they just buy from whoever has them?
Because processing is where the real power sits. China doesn't just have rare earths in the ground—it has the factories, the expertise, the supply chains that turn raw ore into the material you can actually use. If you depend on China for that, China controls your technology sector. The U.S. wants to break that dependency.
And Brazil is the solution?
Brazil is part of it. They have the reserves, they have the mining industry already in place, and they're not China. If the U.S. can invest in Brazilian production and processing, suddenly there's an alternative supply line that doesn't run through Beijing.
What does Brazil get out of this?
Capital, jobs, leverage. American money flowing into mining operations means employment across the whole supply chain. It also means Brazil becomes strategically important to Washington, which has its own advantages in trade negotiations and geopolitics.
Is this just about minerals, or is it about something bigger?
It's about the energy transition itself. Whoever controls the rare earths controls the batteries, the wind turbines, the electric grid of the future. This is a long game, and it's being played right now.
What happens in December?
That's when it gets real. American companies and officials will meet with Brazilian miners to start drafting actual agreements. This moves from proposal to contract.