Decree No. 13,146/2026 sets out the criteria a substance must meet to be designated a critical mineral or a strategic mineral in Brazil, and provides for the possibility of organizing the official list into three priority classes. The decree implements Law No. 15,506/2026, which established the National Policy on Critical and Strategic Minerals (PNMCE). The class assigned may guide how the PNMCE’s instruments are directed to each substance.
The decree does not include the list of substances. It defines the method for drawing up and updating the list: the requirements for designation, the criteria for assigning priority classes, and the authority responsible for deciding.
The measure was published on November 4, 2026, in an extra edition of the Federal Official Gazette (DOU, No. 207-B), and has been in force since the date of publication (art. 6).
What does the decree require for a substance to be a critical mineral?
The analysis of each substance must demonstrate, cumulatively, three requirements (art. 2):
- the substance’s necessity for key sectors of the national economy, considering its applications and the technical and economic feasibility of replacing it;
- insufficient, unstable, or vulnerable availability of the substance, due to a shortfall in domestic production, heavy reliance on imports, geographic concentration of foreign supply, geopolitical risks, market restrictions, or technological bottlenecks;
- the possibility of a shortage that poses a significant risk to the economy, considering the effects on production, employment, and access to goods and services in the dependent sectors, especially those related to the energy transition, food and nutrition security, and national security and sovereignty, including in the technological field.
In analyzing the second requirement, the decree requires consideration of the following, at the affected stages of the production chain:
- the ability to meet demand and diversify sources of supply, including through recycling, use of tailings and waste rock, and other secondary sources;
- limits on the availability of water and other natural resources, and the socio-environmental impacts on territories and communities;
- the exposure of production and transport to climate events.
And what about strategic minerals?
Also cumulatively (art. 3), the analysis must demonstrate:
- the substance’s relevance to the country, arising from significant reserves, considering the available geological knowledge and Brazil’s position in global supply;
- the substance’s essentiality for at least one of the following purposes: generating a trade surplus, considering exports, imports, and the potential for adding value to the mineral chain in the country; technological development; regional development; or reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the respective production chain.
A single substance may be designated both a critical mineral and a strategic mineral, provided it meets the requirements of each legal definition (art. 1, §3).
How do the priority classes work?
The list may be organized into three priority classes to guide the implementation of the PNMCE (art. 4). Classification takes place after designation and results from an integrated assessment of five criteria: geopolitical risk; supply concentration, including in beneficiation and refining; substitutability; Brazil’s position in the production chain; and the country’s dependence and vulnerability. A substance does not have to meet all of them (art. 4, §3).
- Class 1: substances that call for priority action by the State, given their high relevance to national interests and the intensity of the strategic risks or opportunities identified.
- Class 2: substances whose relevance justifies measures to develop them, reduce vulnerabilities, or strengthen production chains.
- Class 3: substances whose relevance justifies strategic monitoring and periodic reassessment.
The National Council for the Industrialization of Critical and Strategic Minerals (CIMCE) may direct the PNMCE’s instruments by class or by mineral substance, subject to the legal requirements and priorities (art. 4, §5).
Who defines the list, and how often is it reviewed?
The list will be defined and updated by resolution of the CIMCE, based on a reasoned proposal from the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) (art. 5). The resolution covers decisions to include, retain, or remove substances and, where applicable, to assign or change a class.
For each substance, the proposal must present:
- a conclusive analysis of whether it meets the requirements of each legal definition;
- how the economic, socio-environmental, and climate criteria were considered;
- the reasons for the priority class assigned, when one is used.
The grounds will be published together with the resolution, except for information protected by law.
The list will be reviewed every four years, in line with the Multiyear Plan (PPA), and the CIMCE may carry out an extraordinary reassessment. Any proposal to change the list or a substance’s priority class must assess the effects on the investment screening mechanism, on the National Registry of Critical and Strategic Mineral Projects (CNPMCE), and on the PNMCE’s instruments, including ongoing operations and projects, and must indicate the applicable transition rules where necessary.
Does inclusion in a class guarantee benefits for projects?
No. Placing a substance in a given priority class does not, by itself, automatically qualify projects, grant benefits, or waive the legal requirements that apply to the PNMCE’s instruments (art. 4, §7). Specific projects will be selected under the general criteria set by the CIMCE and the powers established in Decree No. 13,118/2026.
Defining which substances make up the list, and their classes, depends on the MME’s proposal and the CIMCE’s resolution. For those who explore, obtain licenses, and invest, it is advisable to follow how changes to the list or its classes will affect the project registry and the investment screening mechanism.
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Source: Decree No. 13,146 of November 4, 2026 (DOU, Section 1, Extra Edition No. 207-B, November 4, 2026). Related legislation: Law No. 15,506/2026 and Decree No. 13,118/2026.
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