List of Critical and Strategic Minerals

On November 5, 2026, the National Council for the Industrialization of Critical and Strategic Minerals (CIMCE) approved the list of 27 minerals considered critical and/or strategic to be prioritized by the National Policy on Critical and Strategic Minerals (PNMCE). The list was organized into three classes, according to the importance of the minerals to Brazil in terms of sovereignty and industrialization. The classes also signal priority of access to the support instruments provided for in the policy.

• Rare Earths
• Graphite
• Lithium
• Nickel
• Cobalt
• Copper
• Manganese
• Silicon
• Uranium

• Tungsten
• Chromium
• Vanadium
• Tantalum
• Titanium
• Phosphate
• Potassium
• Sulfur

• Niobium
• Tin
• Iron
• Zinc
• Gold
• Magnesium
• Molybdenum
• Thorium
• Aluminum
• Platinum Group

To draw up the list, the minerals proposed by the ministries that make up the CIMCE were considered. Lists from other countries and from other council representatives (the Brazilian Mining Institute, the National Council of Industry, the National Union of the Fertilizer Raw Materials Industry, and the Critical Minerals Association) were also consulted, along with suggestions from experts.

The classification took into account geopolitical risk, the geographic concentration of production, the potential for substitution, Brazil’s position in the production chain, and the country’s dependence and vulnerability.

In addition to providing legal certainty, inclusion on the list is a criterion for access to the PNMCE’s new support instruments. Only projects focused on these 27 minerals and entered in the National Project Registry may receive government support.

The list may be updated at future council meetings.

Source: Civil House of the Presidency of the Republic (Casa Civil), Governo Federal aprova lista brasileira de minerais críticos e estratégicos (in Portuguese), published on November 5, 2026.