Brazil will hold the COP30 climate summit in November, where it is expected to lead the world in supporting a green transition. In recent years, Brazil has made greater efforts to increase its renewable energy capacity and protect the Amazon rainforest from deforestation activities. However, in the lead-up to the summit, Brazil\u2019s government has announced plans to auction new areas for oil and gas exploration and expand fossil fuel production over the coming years, decisions that are at odds with its COP30 presidency.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When Luiz In\u00e1cio \u201cLula\u201d da Silva went up against former president Jair Bolsonaro in the 2022 elections, the world was prepared for a distinct shift in policy, as left-wing Lula pledged to reduce deforestation and support climate policies. Bolsonaro\u2019s legacy was one of deforestation, as he dismantled environmental policies<\/a> through budget cuts, weakened institutions, and rolled back regulations during his time in office. In contrast, the Lula administration has focused on environmental restoration, reinstating key environmental policies, which contributed to a 43 percent reduction in deforestation by early 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n However, despite Lula\u2019s strong support for climate policies throughout his electoral campaign, the Brazilian president appears to be going back on some of his pledges by backing higher levels of fossil fuel production. Earlier in the month, the Brazilian government announced plans to extract $6.2 billion from the country\u2019s oil industry<\/a> to boost the country\u2019s economy.\u00a0<\/p>\n Brazil still has large untapped and unexplored areas of the pre-salt zone that it can use to appeal to investors, much to the dismay of climate activists. Earlier in the year, the government said it planned to tap into the national oil fund, which was created in 2010 to collect royalties from oil and has accumulated $3.5 billion to date. However, more funding is expected to be needed to fulfil many of the Lula administration\u2019s pledges.\u00a0<\/p>\n This month, Brazil\u2019s government held auctions for oil exploration, ahead of COP30. The country\u2019s oil sector regulator, ANP, plans to auction the exploration rights to 172 oil and gas blocks spanning 56,000 square miles of mainly offshore area. It includes 47 blocks in the Amazon basin, which is considered a sensitive area near the river. Fossil fuel producers have often viewed this area as a promising new oil frontier<\/a>, despite the environmental concerns around exploration there. This week, Exxon Mobil and Chevron purchased<\/a> offshore blocks, suggesting greater diversification in Brazil\u2019s oil industry as it opens its door to American firms.\u00a0<\/p>\n Brazil\u2019s state-owned oil company, Petrobras, has long been pushing to drill in the Amazon basin and President Lula recently put pressure on the environmental watchdog, Ibama, to deliver the environmental licence to drill in the region. Brazil plans to become the world\u2019s fourth-largest oil producer, aiming to expand its oil and gas production by 20 percent by 2030, a target that is supported by Lula, despite his strong climate pledges. \u201cWe want the oil because it will still be around for a long time. We need to use it to fund our energy transition, which will require a lot of money,\u201d Lula said in February.<\/p>\n Climate groups and environmentalists around the world oppose the government\u2019s plan over concerns that new exploration could threaten biodiversity and put Brazil\u2019s climate aims in jeopardy. \u201cThis auction is posing really serious and grave threats for biodiversity, communities and climate,\u201d said<\/a> Nicole Figueiredo de Oliveira, the executive director of the civil society organisation Instituto Internacional Arayara.\u00a0<\/p>\n