01/10/2019
Discurso proferido pelo senhor ministro de Estado de Minas e Energia, Bento Albuquerque, na abertura do Debate Geral da 63ª. Conferência Geral da AIEA:
“Madam President, Ambassador Alicia Buenrostro Massieu,
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to take part in the Agency’s General Conference. I wish to share with you my Government's vision of the decisive role nuclear power is playing in transforming Brazil's future.
These changes begin with fundamental structural reforms that are essential to the nation’s financial health and sustainability. The Brazilian Government is working to recast the economic landscape by opening up new opportunities for long-term investments.
The nuclear sector is a unique and irreplaceable pillar in our strategy for sustainable development.
Clean, safe and secure nuclear power has long been a vital component in Brazil's energy mix, helping supply major demand centers in heavily populated and industrialized regions. Due to its privileged position as part of a select group of countries having large reserves of uranium as well as mastery of the fuel cycle, Brazil will continue to invest in nuclear.
Madam President,
The Brazilian Government is moving on multiple fronts.
We are committed to making the Angra 3 nuclear plant operative as early as 2026. Its prompt conclusion is critical to ensuring the security of supply for a power grid of continental dimensions and which is slated to expand in line with a growing dynamic economy.
Brazil has a highly environmental-friendly energy generation model and we plan to keep it that way. Next month’s Climate Change Conference will provide an excellent opportunity to showcase how nuclear energy can contribute to environmental protection.
We are pushing ahead with the design and construction of the Brazilian Multipurpose Nuclear Reactor. It will allow Brazil to meet its domestic radioisotope and radiopharmaceutical needs, as well as to increase research capabilities in nuclear techniques.
We are taking steps to improve governance and enhance control, oversight and accountability of nuclear fuel cycle activities. We envision a new business model for uranium mining and management of mining tailings, including public-private partnerships. Brazil expects to become a major supplier for the international fuel market.
None of this is possible without up-to-date environmental and social remediation measures. We are committed to the highest standards of nuclear safety and security. We are dealing head on with the challenge of improving our internal controls by segregating regulatory from research and development activities. We value the contribution of the Agency in promoting education, guidance and support.
In all of these fields, Argentina is our indispensable and strategic partner.
By pooling research resources, we can fuse our cutting-edge technological and engineering capabilities to develop complementary Small Modular Reactor projects.
Our binational system of account and control of nuclear materials – ABACC – provides the institutional safeguards that underpin our cooperation.
Madam President,
Allow me to pay a final tribute to the late director-general Yukiya Amano. At the helm of the Agency, he showed principled leadership as well as an unwavering commitment to ensuring that the Agency remain a force for world peace and stability.
We will not forget his abiding encouragement to the Agency's active collaboration in technical and research projects of direct interest to Brazil.
Last year, the IAEA donated two mammography units to be installed in Brazilian Navy hospital vessels providing healthcare to isolated communities in the Amazon region. It is an effective example of how to expand access to nuclear medicine, especially for low-income populations distant from mainstream medical facilities.
Also with Agency support, MOSCAMED Brasil is researching new sterile insect technique treatments for neglected tropical diseases that affect vulnerable populations in developing countries.
Mr Amano was particularly fond of the Agency’s cooperation with Brazil's Antarctic Station, where he was scheduled to inaugurate the laboratories for radioisotopic investigation. His planned visit to Antarctica was frustrated by a tragic turn of events, but his vision and enthusiasm will continue to inspire us.
Today, I have the honor to announce that my Government will name a research laboratory at our Antarctic Station after the late director-general Yukiya Amano.
Finally, Madam President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Brazil fully shares Mr Amano’s vision, and pays homage to a man who dedicated his life to peace and the peaceful uses of the atom for the benefit of future generations.
We look forward to the opportunity afforded by the General Conference to discuss and debate how best to advance this shared commitment.
Thank you.”
