Brazil already gets almost 86% of its electricity from low-carbon sources—a major achievement. Over the last 12 months, from August 2025 through July 2026, hydropower supplied just over half of electricity consumption, wind about 14%, solar nearly 12%, biofuels about 7%, and nuclear about 2%. Fossil fuels supplied the remaining 14%, mostly gas at around 11%, followed by coal at roughly 3% and oil at about 1%. The next challenge is to electrify transport, heating and industry, which will require much more clean electricity while further reducing reliance on fossil fuels and their climate and air-pollution impacts.

Is Electricity Growing in Brazil?

Electricity consumption per person is growing, but only barely: the latest 2026 figure is about 3,600 kWh per person, just 12 kWh above the previous record of 3,590 kWh in 2024—an increase of roughly 0.3%. Low-carbon electricity generation per person, meanwhile, is about 3,090 kWh, down 28 kWh, or nearly 1%, from its 2024 record of 3,116 kWh. This near-stagnation in overall consumption and decline from the clean-electricity record are concerning: Brazil needs stronger growth in low-carbon generation to support electrification and rising electricity demand.

Suggestions

Brazil can build on its success by expanding wind and solar, which already provide substantial amounts of clean electricity. Faster deployment of solar on rooftops and at utility scale, alongside additional wind farms, could help lift low-carbon generation beyond its previous record. Expanding transmission, storage and grid flexibility would help deliver this electricity where and when it is needed. Brazil should also consider expanding nuclear generation to complement its large hydro, wind and solar fleet with additional steady low-carbon electricity.

History

Brazil’s low-carbon electricity history has been shaped by large hydropower changes alongside more recent wind and solar growth. Hydro generation rose by about 15 TWh in 1984, then fell by roughly 37 TWh in 2001 before recovering through annual gains of around 15–20 TWh from 2002 to 2005. Further increases of about 25 TWh in 2007, 21 TWh in 2009 and 25 TWh in 2011 were followed by declines totaling roughly 42 TWh in 2013–2014. Hydro recovered by around 21 TWh in 2016 and 18 TWh in 2018. In the early 2020s, a 33 TWh hydro decline in 2021 coincided with a 15 TWh wind increase, followed by a major hydro rebound of nearly 64 TWh in 2022. Solar then added about 20 TWh in 2023 and 19 TWh in 2024, while wind added another 14 TWh in 2023. Hydro’s roughly 24 TWh decline in 2025 reinforces the importance of sustained expansion across Brazil’s clean-electricity sources.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade

* 12M = Last 12 months (Aug 2025 – Jul 2026) — a rolling 12-month period, not a calendar year.