Vale and BNDES Launch Critical Minerals Fund Raise in Brazil

Brazil · Mining & Strategy

Brazil sits on some of the planet’s richest deposits of the metals that power batteries and the energy transition, yet mines almost none of them. A new fund, anchored by Vale and the national development bank, is meant to start changing that.

What is the critical minerals fund?

The Rio Times, the Latin American financial news outlet, reports that the critical minerals fund anchored by Vale and the national development bank has begun raising capital, with first investments planned for this year. The vehicle aims to mobilise up to R$1 billion (about $180 million), a figure its managers say could reach R$2 billion ($360 million) if market demand is strong.

It is run by a consortium of Régia Capital, Ore Investments and BB Asset, the asset-management arm of Banco do Brasil, with mining specialist Mauro Barros among the lead partners. The structure was chosen after the development bank ran a competitive process to select managers.

How is it financed?

Vale and the development bank’s investment arm have each committed between R$100 million and R$250 million, capped at 25% of total committed capital. For every R$2 raised from the market, the two anchors add R$1 each, a structure designed to crowd in private money with patient public-linked capital.

BB Asset has already gathered more than R$100 million from large clients for a feeder fund that will buy into the main vehicle. The fund targets professional investors, including pension funds and family offices, over a ten-year life split between four years of investing and up to six to sell out.

Which minerals does it target?

The fund will back early-stage projects in rare earths, niobium, copper, uranium, graphite, lithium and nickel. These are the inputs for electric-vehicle batteries, wind turbines, advanced electronics, defence systems and fertilisers, the supply chains at the centre of the global energy transition.

The focus is on the exploration phase, where projects often need R$50 million to R$100 million and where cheaper, patient capital can be most useful. The managers say the pipeline already runs to hundreds of possible opportunities across the country.

Why does it matter strategically?

Brazil holds roughly 90% of the world’s niobium reserves, the second-largest rare-earth deposits and the third-largest nickel reserves, yet accounts for a tiny share of global critical-mineral output. The fund is part of a strategy to convert that geological wealth into actual production rather than ceding the field to China, which dominates mining and refining.

For investors in Berlin, Paris and New York, the vehicle is a way to gain early exposure to that build-out alongside Vale’s expertise and a state-linked anchor. It also signals that Brazil is leaning on targeted investment funds rather than a single state-owned champion to drive its minerals push.

What should investors and analysts watch next?

• The first deals: the projects the fund backs in 2026 will signal which minerals and regions it prioritises.
• Final fund size: whether the raise lands at R$1 billion or stretches toward R$2 billion shows market appetite.
• Foreign participation: how much capital comes from outside Brazil, given the country’s earlier strategic-minerals funds drew heavily on overseas money.
• Project maturity: exploration assets can take a decade to reach production, testing the fund’s patience.
• Geopolitical timing: China’s rare-earth export controls and Western demand will shape valuations through the cycle.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the critical minerals fund?

It is a Brazilian private-equity fund anchored by Vale and the national development bank, aiming to raise up to R$1 billion to back early-stage projects in rare earths, niobium, copper, lithium, nickel and other strategic metals.

How much will it raise?

The target is up to R$1 billion (about $180 million), with managers saying it could reach R$2 billion ($360 million) depending on demand from professional investors.

Who manages and anchors it?

It is managed by a consortium of Régia Capital, Ore Investments and BB Asset, and anchored by Vale and the development bank’s investment arm, which each commit up to R$250 million.

When are the first investments?

The fund plans its first investments in 2026, focusing on early-stage exploration projects, over a ten-year life with four years to invest and up to six to exit.

Why is Brazil doing this?

Brazil holds vast reserves of niobium, rare earths and nickel but produces little, and the fund is part of a strategy to turn that endowment into production and reduce dependence on Chinese supply chains.

Connected Coverage

The fund is the vehicle behind a strategy we covered when Lula rejected a state minerals company and backed the BNDES fund model. It fits the resource map laid out in our Brazil mining 2026 guide built around Vale, and the geopolitics explored in why Brazil bet against Washington’s critical-minerals alliance.

Reported by Sofia Gabriela Martinez for The Rio Times — Latin American financial news. Filed May 20, 2026 — 18:30 BRT.