Brazil has taken a significant step into carbon removal with the announcement that Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) will finance the country’s first commercial-scale bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) project.
BNDES has approved R$384.3 million (~$71 million) under its BNDES Mais Inovação program to support FS Indústria de Biocombustíveis in deploying permanent CO2 storage at its flagship corn-ethanol plant in Lucas do Rio Verde, one of Mato Grosso’s major agribusiness hubs.
The project centers on constructing a dedicated capture and storage unit that will compress and inject CO2 into deep saline formations within the Parecis Basin, located directly beneath the ethanol facility. Unlike conventional CCS, BECCS enables net carbon removal because the CO2 originates from biomass, making long-term storage a direct subtraction from atmospheric levels.
Unlocking Carbon-Negative Biofuels and New Revenue Streams
Once the system is running at full capacity, FS expects to capture and sequester all of the plant’s direct emissions – about 423,000 tons of CO2 annually.
This would allow the company to offer one of the lowest-carbon ethanol products on the global market, potentially reaching carbon-negative territory when paired with its use of second-crop corn and renewable biomass for process energy.
For BNDES, the move reinforces its role in building the policy and financial foundations for a future Brazilian carbon market.
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President Aloizio Mercadante emphasized that annual removals above 420,000 tons support the country’s Paris Agreement commitments and illustrate how industrial BECCS can complement Brazil’s longstanding leadership in biofuels.
FS CEO Rafael Abud described the investment as a defining moment for the company’s long-term strategy. He highlighted BECCS as a pathway to new revenue lines, including high-integrity removal credits, while positioning Brazil to compete in emerging global markets for low-carbon materials and fuels.
FS currently operates three major biorefineries in Mato Grosso, with combined ethanol output topping 2.6 billion liters per year, alongside production of corn oil, animal feed co-products and bioelectricity. The company says the BECCS investment strengthens its broader sustainability agenda, which is closely aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
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