Brazil opens Acelen Agripark for macaúba-based SAF

The President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva participated in the inauguration of the Centro de Tecnologia e Inovação Agroindustrial (Acelen Agripark) in Montes Claros, Minas Gerais.

• Main announcement and event details:

  • Inauguration of the Acelen Agripark on 29 August 2025 at 15:00, Montes Claros, Minas Gerais; attendees included President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, ministers Rui Costa and Alexandre Silveira, and company leadership.
  • Project financing and scale: construction investment of R$ 314 million, of which R$ 258 million was financed by BNDES; the biocombustibles project foresees initial investments of US$ 3 billion for the first integrated plant (including Acelen Agripark, a biorrefinery in Bahia, and macaúba planting sites); expected production of 1 billion liters of SAF per year from 2028; the project is part of the Novo PAC and cites an FGV study estimating 85,000 jobs across the value chain.

• Background, technical details and implementation timelines:

  • The center will perform germplasm banking, selection, cloning, genetic improvement, seedling production protocols, automation to reduce losses, experimental cultivations, pilot extraction and processing units; Acelen reports the first industrial extraction of macaúba oil earlier this year.
  • Programme Valoriza: first phase plans 36,000 hectares (20% of a total planned 180,000 hectares), estimated 1 million tonnes/year of fresh fruit; full implementation by 2026; around 20% of plantations are allocated to family agriculture per project statements.
  • The project is listed in Brazil’s Programa País to the Green Climate Fund, as announced by the Ministry of Finance on 31 July 2025; the initiative aligns with the Lei do Combustível do Futuro (14.993/24) which sets mandatory aviation emissions reduction targets from 2027.