Brazil, Latin America’s economic powerhouse, has reached a remarkable milestone in its journey toward a cleaner energy future: for the first time ever, wind and solar power generated more than a third of the nation’s electricity in August 2025. According to government data analyzed by energy think tank Ember and reported by The Associated Press, these two renewable sources together accounted for 34% of Brazil’s electricity generation, producing a record 19 terawatt-hours (TWh) in a single month—enough to power about 119 million average Brazilian homes.
This achievement didn’t come out of nowhere. Over the past decade and a half, Brazil has methodically expanded its renewable energy capacity, particularly in wind and solar. As Ricardo Baitelo, project coordinator at Brazil’s Institute for Energy and the Environment, told the AP, “This is a number that was expected, because the installed capacity of these sources has been built over at least 15 years and, more recently, with solar energy. But it is undoubtedly symbolic, and you see these sources contributing a significant fraction of electricity at a given moment and showing that they are important. They are not alternative sources, they are already a well-represented part of Brazil’s electricity mix.”
Indeed, the numbers tell a compelling story. Solar’s share of the electricity mix grew from just over 1% in 2019 to 9.6% in 2024, while wind power climbed from 8.8% to 15% in the same period, according to Ember. By August 2025, both wind and solar contributed 17% each to the mix, as detailed in Energy Tracker Asia’s analysis. This surge in renewables marks a significant diversification away from Brazil’s traditional reliance on hydropower, which, while still dominant, fell to a four-year low in August, providing just 48% of the country’s electricity—only the second time on record it has supplied less than half of Brazil’s power.
Hydropower’s vulnerability to drought—an issue exacerbated by climate change—has been a longstanding concern. In previous dry years, Brazil was forced to ramp up fossil fuel generation, with natural gas, coal, and oil plants accounting for as much as 26% of electricity in August 2021. But this year, thanks to the rapid growth of wind and solar, fossil fuel plants supplied just 14% (7.8 TWh) in August, helping Brazil avoid a repeat of those costly, polluting surges, as Ember highlighted.
The environmental benefits are substantial. Brazil’s power sector emissions peaked in 2014, but by 2024 had fallen by 31%, despite a 22% rise in electricity demand. Ember credits this progress to a fifteenfold increase in wind and solar generation, which not only kept up with demand but also slashed fossil fuel generation by 45%. As Raul Miranda, Ember’s global program director in Rio de Janeiro, put it, “Brazil shows how a rapidly growing economy can meet its rising need for electricity with solar and wind. Solar and wind are a perfect match for Brazil’s hydropower resources, taking the pressure off in drought years. A diversified mix is a fundamental strategy for tackling risks related to climate change.”
Brazil’s renewable revolution has been driven by a combination of aggressive policy incentives and market forces. The National Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL) noted that in 2024 alone, Brazil added a record 10.9 gigawatts of new power capacity, with 91% coming from solar and wind projects. Auctions, tax incentives, and a welcoming investment climate have drawn major foreign players like Enel and AES, fueling the sector’s rapid expansion, as reported by Enerdata and RatedPower.
But it’s not all smooth sailing. The country’s transmission grid—originally designed for massive hydroelectric dams—has struggled to keep up with the intermittent nature of wind and solar. Grid constraints have led to curtailments, where renewable output is capped to prevent overloads, which, according to Reuters, has already prompted warnings about potential slowdowns in future investments. The government has responded with plans for battery energy storage systems and smart grid upgrades, but experts caution that delays could threaten Brazil’s ambitions to reach 140 gigawatts of wind and solar capacity by 2030, a target aligned with the 1.5°C climate goal outlined by Climate Analytics.
Economic implications are profound, both domestically and internationally. Renewables now meet nearly 45% of Brazil’s primary energy demand, according to the International Energy Agency. For Brazilian households, the benefits are tangible: residential solar installations have slashed energy bills by up to 90%, sparking a surge in consumer interest and driving an estimated 25,000 monthly searches for home solar systems, as reported by CPG Click Petroleo e Gas.
Industry dynamics are shifting as well. Petrobras, Brazil’s state oil giant, has announced plans to pivot toward renewables after 2035, with a focus on biofuels in the meantime. This transition is expected to reshape the country’s industrial landscape, offering opportunities for multinational companies to supply advanced technologies such as bifacial solar modules and trackers, as highlighted in RatedPower’s 2025 trends report.
On the global stage, Brazil’s progress sets an example for other emerging markets. The country is currently the only G20 member on track to meet the ambitious renewable energy expansion goals set at the UN COP28 climate summit in Dubai in 2023. As Baitelo emphasized, “This is the big warning and a yellow light that could turn red. And Brazil needs to take urgent measures to avoid losing this condition and this good example of wind and solar deployment.”
Yet, there are voices of caution. Paulo Pedrosa, president of Abrace Energia, which represents large energy consumers, warned that Brazil’s heavy reliance on subsidies for renewables—especially residential solar—has increased energy costs and, ironically, led to the contracting of expensive thermal energy to keep the system balanced when wind and sun are lacking. “The excess of renewable energy subsidy models has increased the cost of energy and, ironically, promoted the contracting of expensive thermal energy, which is necessary to keep the system balanced when there is no wind and no sun,” Pedrosa told the AP. He argued that Brazil should focus on using its abundant clean, low-cost energy to boost industrial output and competitiveness while contributing to global decarbonization.
Looking ahead, experts warn that unless Brazil accelerates its grid expansion and reforms its regulatory framework, fossil fuel interests could exploit gaps in the system to expand thermal generation in future auctions, potentially increasing greenhouse gas emissions even as renewables continue to grow.
Brazil’s energy landscape is changing fast. With hydro, wind, and solar now forming a robust triad, the country is not just generating power—it’s reshaping its economic future and setting a standard for others to follow. The challenge, as always, will be to keep the momentum going while balancing ambition with the realities of infrastructure and market dynamics.
