EN 
PT_BR 
With more than 2.4 GW of installed power in solar energy, 1.7 GW in DG (distributed generation) and around 730 MW in GC (centralized generation), the state of Minas Gerais leads the national ranking. The data are from ANEEL (National Electric Energy Agency).
Currently, the state has incentives for the expansion of photovoltaic sources in Minas Gerais. One of these incentives is the Sol de Minas Project, which aims to leverage the state's leading role in the solar energy sector.
According to the Government of Minas Gerais, the initiative aims to diversify the energy matrix by increasing photovoltaic energy generation projects and attracting companies that supply goods and services to the sector.
By increasing the installed electricity generation capacity and strengthening the production chain, the project has already resulted in 852 of the 853 municipalities in Minas Gerais joining solar GD, which represents more than 99%. Centralized generations are more concentrated in solar parks and plants located, in most cases, in cities in the North of Minas Gerais.
According to data from ABSOLAR (Brazilian Association of Photovoltaic Solar Energy), the state of Minas Gerais has already created around 60 thousand jobs and received investments of more than R$ 9 billion.
“In practice, it is possible to verify results with the Sol de Minas project, in which the photovoltaic sector in the state already avoids the emission of 394 thousand tons of greenhouse gases per year. Furthermore, the fact that the photovoltaic sector has a cyclical economy in relation to the operating life of its panels prevents waste and contributes to minimizing CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. In this context, the current administration has already attracted more than R$ 43 billion in investments related to renewable energy. The value refers to 23 projects located in 11 municipalities, which enabled the creation of more than 5,300 direct and indirect jobs in Minas Gerais”, said the government in a statement.
Race to Zero
Last year, the state formalized its adherence to the global campaign Race to Zero, to reduce carbon emissions to zero, demonstrating the current management’s commitment to the environmental cause and focus on sustainable development. The international initiative projects limiting the increase in global temperature to 1.5 degrees. The actions of the Government of Minas, in this sense, were also presented during COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland.
Adherence to global action is in line with the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) defined by the UN, which provide, among other measures, environmental sustainability, investment in clean sources of energy and actions that avoid sudden climate changes and their impacts to nature.
For the Director of Energy at Headquarters-Minas, Mariana de Oliveira, the objective sought by the Government of Minas will be achieved through the intensification of decarbonization actions and the attraction of investments for sustainable businesses.
“The adoption of this transition plan has already begun to be implemented with the commitment to update the Energy and Climate Change Plan for the state of Minas Gerais, which should occur within 12 months. In it, measures will be established to bring emissions to zero by 2050. Furthermore, by 2030, intermediate targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions must be achieved. In this way, it will be possible to facilitate an inclusive and sustainable socioeconomic development scenario”, informed the Energy director.
