During my time at the head of the Ministry of Mines and Energy, we sought to deepen and strengthen international relations. Today, the country occupies a prominent position with the International Energy Agency and is an important player in the sustainable energy production agenda.

In January 2020, on a State mission to India, three memoranda of understanding were signed in the energy and mining sectors. In subsequent years, through the technical teams, despite the Covid 19 pandemic, the possibilities for cooperation between the two countries were discussed and intensified.

The maturation of the dialogue and the political will led, in April 2022, to the carrying out of a mission led by the Ministry of Mines and Energy of Brazil, with the participation of the Energy Research Company, of a Brazilian delegation of business leaders from the sugar-energy sector (Union from the Sugarcane and Bioenergy Industry, Local Production Arrangement for Alcohol, Exal, Sugar Energy Forum, Copersucar, Bunge BP) and automotive (Volkswagen, Toyota, Stelantis and Abraciclo, Yahama), and Petrobras.

As a result of a well-organized agenda, meetings and exchange of information were held between ethanol producers and the automotive industry, with the main results being the collaboration between Brazil and India in reducing water consumption for biofuel production, in improving technological development of second generation ethanol and in the development of a sustainable mobility platform with the valorization of bioenergy.

Brazil 's national biofuel policy (RenovaBio) was highlighted on the occasion, which will allow avoiding the emissions of 670 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent from 2020 to 2030, and how this State policy makes it possible to improve energy efficiency-environmental impact of ethanol plants, attracting investment and generating jobs and income. Representatives of the Brazilian automotive sector shared the national experience with the use of 27% ethanol in gasoline, the advantages of ethanol as a driver octane rating and what adaptations were necessary to use the biofuel.

The effort made allowed negotiations to continue and, in 2023, we had a pavilion dedicated exclusively to ethanol at the Auto Expo Motor Show 2023, the main and largest auto show in Asia, with the outstanding participation of the Union of the Sugar Cane and Bioenergy Industry, for Brazil, and the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, for India.

In this way, based on international relations conducted with planning and predictability, Brazil and its partners are building a sustainable mobility solution for the southern and northern hemisphere, in which one of the foundations is bioenergy. Importance of biofuels for Brazil and India: Brazil is one of the largest producers and consumers of biofuels.

In 2021, emissions of 24 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent were avoided by replacing fossil fuels with biofuels. Considering the automotive market, in which it occupies the eighth largest market for light vehicles and the fourth largest market for heavy vehicles, where they are flex fuel , 94% of passenger vehicles and 51% of commercial vehicles, the country presents itself as an important vector of the energy transition of low carbon mobility for the world.

India, as the third largest fuel market in the world, being the second largest sugar producer and the fourth largest vehicle market, has biofuels as a foundation for the decarbonization of its transport matrix. Gasoline in the country today has 10% ethanol and will be progressing to a mixture of 20% from 2023 onwards. of fossil fuels, as well as to improve air quality.

Brazil-India trade balance in the energy sector: India is the fifth Brazilian trade partner in the world, with a total volume of exports and imports, in 2021, of 11.53 billion dollars. Exports total US$4.80 billion, of which 47% are petroleum, 16% vegetable fats and oils, and 13% gold. Imports represent 6.73 billion dollars, being fuel (mainly diesel) with 20%, organic and inorganic compounds with 13%, as well as insecticides and fungicides with 8.4%, among others. These data, combined with the characteristics of complementarity between the two economies, demonstrate the potential for growth in trade and business relations between the two countries.

Alliance Brazil, India in bioenergy: The adoption of ethanol in gasoline by India allows for an increase in the octane rating of the fuel sold in that country, greater balance in the sugar market by reducing the supply of this product, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on foreign oil, providing energy security and greater sustainability to its energy matrix.

Prospects for the Future: The Brazil-India alliance will allow:
a) Develop a harmonized methodology for analyzing the life cycle from well to wheel to assess sustainable mobility, whose importance was materialized in the creation of the Fuel of the Future Program, created by the National Council for Energy Policy in 2021;
b) Advances in flex technology fuel and flex hybrids, given that technological developments would not be restricted to Brazil, bringing together two important vehicle production centers;
c) Increase in sugarcane productivity by sharing the experiences and varieties of the two countries;
d) Sustainable aviation fuels, which is an important frontier for the sugar and ethanol industry, given that we can produce, in Brazil, 9 billion liters per year, apart from a huge potential in India;
e) Second-generation ethanol, with both countries joining efforts to increase the supply of ethanol, without increasing the planted area, and
f) Fuel cells, in which ethanol and biomethane will be the sources of hydrogen.