Conference Speakers

Kátia Abreu was twice a senator for Tocantins and is the former president of the Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil (CNA). She was Brazil's first female Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply. Today she works as a businesswoman in agriculture, real estate and as a consultant on agribusiness, international markets, logistics and renewable energies. She is CEO of BRZ Consulting and represents the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) on the Board of Directors of JBS, the world's largest conglomerate of animal protein companies.

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An electrical engineer with a master's degree in production engineering, he has worked for major companies in the electricity sector, in the areas of electricity generation, transmission and distribution, accumulating 45 years of professional experience. He held the positions of Transmission Superintendent and Engineering Director at Companhia Hidrelétrica do São Francisco - CHESF. He was also Director of Systems Management at Companhia Energética de Pernambuco - CELPE, Assistant to the President of Eletrobras, Director of the Electricity Regulatory Agency - ANEEL, President of the Energy Research Company - EPE and Secretary of Energy Planning and Development at the Ministry of Mines and Energy - MME. He was Professor of Energy Transmission at the University of Pernambuco. He is currently Director of Acropolis Energia.

Mauro Fernando Basquera Junior holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Control and Automation Engineering from Universidade Federal de Santa Maria and an Executive MBA with a focus on Electricity Sector Business from Fundação Getulio Vargas. As the Technical Manager for Latin America at Sungrow Power Supply Co., Ltd., he currently he leads a team that focus on the promotion, design and implementation of PV and ESS systems throughout the region.

Leandro Borgo estudou Relações Internacionais (UVV - Universidade de Vila Velha) e Filosofia (UFES - Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo). Trabalhou como corretor no mercado financeiro, mas logo migrou para a área de energia renovável. Em 2004, foi gerente de usina de uma das maiores indústrias de biodiesel da época, em Piracicaba. Em 2007, na Renova Energia, foi responsável pelo desenvolvimento de projetos de energia eólica. Em 2010, participou de um Road Show bem-sucedido que resultou em um IPO em 2011. Em 2013, tirou um ano sabático e, em 2014, fundou a Sertão Energia Solar. Durante esse período, desenvolveu mais de 10 GWp de projetos, dos quais 3,1 GWp foram implementados. Em 2022, ajudou a fundar a ABHAV (Associação Brasileira de Hidrogênio Verde e Amônia) e foi eleito presidente do conselho de administração.

Kleber Costa Corrêa, MSc, is Executive Manager of Generation Pipeline Development at Eletrobras. An engineer with more than 15 years' experience in the development of renewable energy generation and power transmission projects, he has worked on various initiatives at Eletrobras, in particular prospecting for business in Central America and the Southern Cone region. He was Executive Assistant to the Engineering Board of CGT Eletrosul, Head of the Southern Cone Branch of Eletrobras and CEO of the Artilleros Wind Farm in Uruguay, and was also Head of the Central America Branch of Eletrobras, whose office was based in Panama. He holds a Master's degree in Production Engineering with a focus on renewable energies from the Federal University of Santa Catarina and an MBA in International Business from Florida International University.

Tiago de Barros Correia is CEO of RegE Consultoria. He is an economist, and specialist in public policy and government management with more than 14 years of experience in the Brazilian Federal Government, and MS.c. in energy systems planning. He was Director of the National Electric Energy Agency - ANEEL - from 2014 to 2018.

CEO of ABIHV, Brazilian Association of the Green Hydrogen Industry. Postgraduate Professor at Fundação Getúlio Vargas - FGV and UFRJ. Professor of the Postgraduate Program at the Army Command and General Staff School. PhD in Energy Planning (COPPE/UFRJ), Master in Information Technology (CEFET/RJ) and in International Finance (FGV/EBAPE)

My mission is to carry out government activities and develop public policies with a focus on promoting the socio-economic development of Brazilian society and increasing the efficiency of public management. I am currently a Specialist in Public Policy and Government Management (Government Manager) and I participate in the implementation of two public policies: the Light for All Program and the More Light for the Amazon Program. My purpose is to seek social transformation, with a view to promoting citizenship, improving the quality of life and increasing the dignity of the Brazilian population through the implementation of public policies.

Ricardo Estefano Rosa is a Production Engineer with a specialization in Renewable Energies and an MBA in Strategic Business Management from FGV. He has almost 30 years' experience in business development and energy solutions. At WEG since 2013, he was Head of Engineering until 2015 and since then he has dedicated himself to developing new businesses, always focused on the energy transition. He currently acts as Coordinator of the Storage WG at ABSOLAR, is a member of the Board of the Brazilian Association of Energy Storage Solutions - ABSAE and leads WEG's Battery Energy Storage Systems business.

Application Engineer at SMA Brazil, specialized in solar photovoltaics, energy storage systems and project management. Bachelor and Master student in Electrical Engineering, focusing on photovoltaic systems. With 8 years of professional experience in solar energy projects and SMA solutions providing technical support and field services. In 2021, he joined the SMA team in Brazil as application engineer and project manager.

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José Augusto holds a bachelor's degree in physics from the State University of Campinas and serves as the Leader of Business Development for Decarbonization and Green Molecules at Casa dos Ventos S/A. In this role, he leads projects aimed at reducing carbon footprints, establishing strategic partnerships across various industry sectors, and promoting the use of green electricity and green molecules, such as hydrogen, methanol, ammonia, and sustainable aviation fuels, as well as the electrification of industrial processes through the implementation of e-boilers. Previously, José Augusto was Director of Business Development - Energy, Oil & Gas at Andrade Gutierrez, where he held a leadership role in areas including hydropower, thermal, wind, and solar energy, as well as energy transmission and distribution, and in the Oil & Gas and LNG sectors. He was also a member of the Board of Directors at TEN, a wind turbine tower manufacturer. His background includes prominent positions such as a member of the Board of Directors for CEMIG, Light, Quiport, and CCR. He served as Director of Project Financing at Quiport, Senior Financial Manager at Suez-Tractebel (now Engie), and Project Finance Manager for Road Concessions at Andrade Gutierrez. His career began in the financial sector with roles at Citibank and Banco Nacional.

A researcher at the SENAI Institute for Innovation in Electrochemistry, he is leading initiatives in lithium-ion batteries, sodium ions and supercapacitors, conducting RD&I projects aimed at producing high-performance national materials for these technologies. With a degree in Chemistry and a Master's in Materials Science from Aix-Marseille Université in France, as well as an MBA in Project Management from UNISENAI-PR, he has a decade of experience in industrial innovation. His current goal is to foster a Brazilian innovation ecosystem around lithium-ion batteries. Since 2018, he has played a key role in planning and implementing pilot lines for the production of battery cells, consolidating his expertise in the various battery chemistries on the market and their manufacturing processes.

Since November 2022, Sergio Jacobsen has been the CEO of Micropower Energy, a company belonging to the Comerc Energia, Siemens and Equinor Groups, which operates in the energy storage solutions segment and whose mission is to bring solutions capable of contributing to Brazil's energy transition towards a more sustainable model for the economy, the environment and society. He previously worked at Siemens for 22 years. In the organization, Sergio held the positions of Sales Manager, Smart Grids Manager and Director until becoming Vice President of Siemens Smart Infrastructure. With a degree in Electrical Engineering from Mackenzie University and an Executive MBA from ESMT Berlin, Sergio joined Micropower at a time of transformation in the electricity sector, which is demanding modernization and adaptation to new digital solutions for business evolution, with a focus on smart grids that enable the addition of more and more renewable energy sources in Brazil and around the world.

Electrical engineer, specialist in expansion planning and regulation of the electricity sector, executive MBA in electricity sector business from FGV, currently studying for a master's degree in energy planning at Coppe/UFRJ. Regulatory coordinator at Quantum Participações, the holding company responsible for the Brookfield group's energy transmission concessions. Manager of the technical-economic analysis project for the insertion of battery storage systems into the basic grid.

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Formado em Administração de Empresas pela Universidade Federal de Pernambuco e Pós graduado em Gestão da Produção pela mesma instituição. Trabalha no Grupo Moura há aproximadamente 15 anos e já liderou a área de desenvolvimento de novos negócios da empresa, gerenciou o Instituto de Tecnologia Edson Mororó Moura - ITEMM, único instituto de pesquisa, desenvolvimento e engenharia do Brasil focado em soluções de baterias, e atualmente e lidera os esforços da empresa no promissor negócio de Armazenamento de Energia.

José Neto is an electrical engineer with a degree from UTFPR, with an exchange in the master's program in Renewable Energies and Smart Grids at Helmut Schmidt University, Hamburg, Germany. He began his career in the automation department of the Toyota Group. During his career, he developed guidelines for the interconnection of centralized wind and solar farms in Germany and played a key role in structuring the engineering team at Comerc GD, the leading developer of distributed generation in Brazil, with more than 200MWp in operation. He is currently engineering director at Micropower, where he is responsible for microgrid design, application engineering and development of the proprietary energy management system, EMS.

Guilherme Nizoli is Head of Consulting Services at NewCharge, responsible for developing energy storage projects for large companies, covering regulatory, financial, and engineering structuring. He is an Electrical Engineer with an MBA in Electricity Sector Business at FGV and has extensive experience in energy storage and renewable energies. He has previously contributed to the promotion of solar energy in the Brazilian energy matrix, participated in the development of public policies, regulations, normative acts, and legal measures - including contributing to the advancement of the Legal Framework for Distributed Generation.

Thais Teixeira works as a Technical Consultant at EPE (Energy Research Office), where she coordinates regional interconnection planning studies, in the Transmission Department. Her fields of research and work include HVDC transmission systems, renewable energy integration and energy storage. Teixeira holds a bachelor's and a master's degree in electrical engineering, both from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), and a postgraduate degree in project management from the Pontificial Catholic University of Minas Gerais (PUC-MG). Her most recent professional experience was coordinating the planning study that recommended a new HVDC system for the Brazilian electricity grid, which was published in 2023 by EPE. Her main previous research was related to energy storage, during her masters, which resulted in the publication of a scientific paper in na international journal. Her previous work experience includes the ONS (National System Operator) and a Project Consulting Company, where she worked with computational modeling for dynamic security assesment of power systems.

Academic background: - Electrical Engineering from the Federal University of Uberlândia-UFU in 2002 - Master's Degree in Electrical Systems Dynamics from UFU in 2003 - Executive MBA in Project Management from FGV in 2006 - Specialist in Technological Innovation Management from Unicamp in 2008 - Executive MBA in Leadership and Management of State-Owned Enterprises from Franklin Covey Business School in 2013 - Specialist in Protection and Control of Electric Power Systems from the Military Institute-IME in 2023 - PhD candidate in Protection of Electric Power Systems Associated with FACTS at IME 2024 Professional Experience: - Joined Eletrobras Eletronorte in 2007 through a public tender and worked as an Electrical Systems Protection Engineer for 17 years. - He worked at the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) from 2009 to 2016 as General Coordinator for Monitoring the Performance of Electric Systems and Substitute Director of the Electric System Monitoring Department. - From 2016 to 2017 he was Director of Engineering and Operation at Eletrobras Distribuição Rondônia - He coordinated the Modernization of the Protection and Control System for the entire 500 kV sector of Eletrobras Eletronorte; - He worked from 2022 to 2023 as Government Program Superintendent, coordinating the completion and closure of the implementation of the Light for All Program in the State of Amapá; - He is currently Executive Manager of Implementation Engineering for the Amazon at Eletrobras.

Ana Carla Petti has more than 20 years of experience in Regulatory, Strategic Operations Management, Risk Management and Middle-Office, working in executive positions in the energy sector at companies such as Braskem and Odebrecht Energia. She has been an executive at the Comerc Energia Group for more than seven years and currently serves as the group's director of regulatory and institutional affairs. She is a chemical engineer and lawyer, with a master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, with a postgraduate degree in Financial Products and Risk Management and an MBA in Executive Management.

CEO and Founder of CELA, with 21 years of experience in the renewable energy sector, including bioenergy, wind energy, solar PV and green hydrogen. Camila currently also serves as Investment and Green Hydrogen Vice-President of the Board of Directors of ABSOLAR (the Brazilian Solar PV Association), Non-Executive Director of the Board of Administration of Brazilian Rare Earths, member of the Advisory Board of the Federation of Industry of São Paulo (COINFRA - FIESP) and is a Finance Expert at the Clean Energy Finance Solutions Center (NREL - USA). Prior to founding CELA, she was Country Manager and Head of Latin America at Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), where she advised clients with research and analysis of renewable energy sectors and markets, and trends in the region. She has also worked in the past at PricewaterhouseCoopers, ERB - Energias Renováveis do Brasil and Infinity Bio-Energy. Camila holds a Master's and Bachelor's degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).

An Electrical Engineer with an emphasis on Power Systems, he graduated from the Federal University of Itajubá and specialized in Electric Power Systems at the Federal University of Santa Catarina. He has worked for 17 years at Companhia de Transmissão de Energia Elétrica Paulista - ISA CTEEP, currently in charge of the Expansion Planning and Studies area, He has experience in planning studies, sector regulation, project structuring and feasibility, R&D coordination and has led initiatives to implement new technologies in the transmission system under the company's concession, including the first large-scale battery project installed in the Brazilian transmission system at SE Registro in the state of São Paulo. He is also currently vice-coordinator of ABSOLAR's Storage WG and coordinator of ABRATE's Expansion Committee.

Vice President of New Business and Innovation at UCB Power. Electrical Engineer from UFMG, with an MBA and board member training from FDC. He has extensive experience in innovative projects in technology and infrastructure for national and multinational organizations. He is currently leading UCB Power's positioning from a battery manufacturer to a leader in new energy storage solutions and is Co-Founder and Board Member of ABSE - Brazilian Association of Energy Storage Solutions.

Bárbara Rubim currently heads Bright Strategies, a consulting firm advising renewable energy businesses on their legal and regulatory structure. In that capacity, she has helped develop more than 230 MW in energy projects in the last three years alone, and more than 2,200 people have completed her in-company training or her Masterclass on Regulation and Business Models in Distributed Generation. In her career in the energy sector, she has acted in public administration as a consultant to the Brazilian Congress, and has worked in the third sector as a coordinator of Greenpeace's Renewable Energy campaign in Brazil, and in the private sector. In addition, she also serves as the current Vice-President of the Managing Board of ABSOLAR (Brazilian Solar Photovoltaic Energy Association) and is the Director of Energy at FIESP's Infrastructure Department. Bárbara is a lawyer with an MBA in Finance and Business Strategies from the Federal University of Uberlândia. She specializes in the regulation of the electricity sector.

Eduardo Tobias is a Managing Partner at Watt Capital. He is a specialist in project investment analysis, project financing, and on mergers & acquisitions of renewable energy projects and assets in Brazil. He is a cofounder and currently the vice-coordinator of ABSOLAR's Green Hydrogen Working Group. Tobias is also a visiting Professor at FGV, teaching for its Power Sector Executive Program, and author of the books 'Investment Analysis in Utility Scale PV Projects' (2021) and 'Investment Analysis in Bioenergy Greenfield Projects' (2015). He has a BSc. in Business Administration from FGV-EAESP and a Professional Master in Bioenergy from FGV-EESP.

Executive with more than 18 years of experience dedicated to the fertilizer industry. He has worked in multinationals in the sector, in several management level positions in Brazil and abroad. Rodrigo managed several operations and led the implementation of excellence programs in fertilizer plants in many countries such as the Netherlands, Finland, Germany and Colombia, involving ammonia and nitrate production processes, as well as blending and distribution units. Rodrigo currently serves as Director of Operations & Business Development at Atlas Agro, a Swiss-based company that aims to lead the transition to low-carbon nitrogen fertilizers, produced from green hydrogen, globally. The first plant will be installed in Pacific Northwest region, in United States, and also has an advanced project to implement the first green fertilizer plant in Brazil, located in Uberaba, Minas Gerais. Rodrigo is also board member of Green Hydrogen Industry Association (ABIHV), one of the main institutions responsible for promoting the green hydrogen industry in the country. Rodrigo has a degree in Business Administration, in addition to having 2 postgraduate degrees, one in Business Logistics and the other in Production Engineering. Rodrigo also holds an MBA from Alliance Manchester Business School, in United Kingdom.

Rodrigo Lopes Sauaia is co-founder and CEO of ABSOLAR (Brazilian Solar Photovoltaic Energy Association), the national association representing Brazilian solar PV companies and professionals. He is co-founder and a governing board member of the GSC (Global Solar Council), a non-profit body representing regional and national solar associations on international issues. Rodrigo holds a PhD in Materials Engineering and Technology from PUC-RS (Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul), a Master's degree in Renewable Energies from Loughborough University (UK), a bachelor's degree in Chemistry from USP (São Paulo University), and has collaborated with the Fraunhofer Institut für Solare Energiesysteme (Germany) and with ETH Zürich (Switzerland).

She has a degree in Chemical Engineering from the Federal University of Maranhão - UFMA (2012) and an MBA in Public Management (2016), and is an Infrastructure Analyst (2012). She is currently the Director of the Energy Transition Department at the National Secretariat for Energy Transition and Planning at the Ministry of Mines and Energy. In 2023 she acted as General Coordinator leading the planning activities for Isolated Systems, especially in the Amazon Region. From 2021 to 2023, she served as Technical Advisor at the MME, contributing to the sector's Innovation and Competitiveness by accompanying studies and actions with international partnerships, including discussions on the offshore energy regulatory framework. From 2019 to 2021, she worked as a Coordinator at the Ministry of Cities, selecting and monitoring macro-drainage projects in risk areas and contributing with improvements to the Risk and Disaster Management Program.

He is an electrical engineer with a degree from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), a master's and doctorate from the Federal University of ABC (UFABC) and a post-doctorate from the UFABC. He has carried out various research projects and publications focusing on the control and connection of distributed energy resources - DER, power quality and microgrids. He currently works as a Technical Regulatory Analyst at the Brazilian Photovoltaic Solar Energy Association - ABSOLAR.

Marcelo Taulois is an executive, advisor, mentor and consultant to companies in the energy sector. He has worked in Brazil and abroad for over 40 years. Marcelo has a degree in electrical engineering from UCP in Brazil, postgraduate degrees from Henley Management College in England and IMD in Switzerland, and is a graduate of the board member development program at FDC in Brazil. He worked for thirteen years in Europe in the oil and gas sector. Since 2001, he has been in Brazil, where he has worked as Country Manager at Aker Solutions, Director at Promon, Country Manager at Scatec Solar, Director at Prumo, provides consultancy through Talante Partners, serves on boards and actively participates in mentoring programs for start-ups. At the moment, he is dedicated to the development of Energy China in Brazil, CEEC Brasil, as its Deputy CEO and CDO.

He holds a Bachelor's degree in Science and Technology, Energy Engineering and a Master's degree in Energy from the Federal University of ABC. He holds an Executive MBA in Economics and Management, with a focus on Government Relations, from the Getúlio Vargas Foundation in São Paulo. He currently works on regulatory issues and coordinates the hydrogen and energy storage theme at the Brazilian Wind Energy and New Technologies Association - ABEEólica.

With 29 years of experience in the electricity sector, she joined the National Electricity System Operator when it was founded, where she built a solid career in technical and management positions. At the end of 2017, she took over the Executive Management of Electricity Planning at the ONS, where she is responsible for the entire planning chain for the operation of the National Interconnected System (SIN). In 2024, she took over as Executive Advisor to the ONS Planning Board, supporting the Director in the management of the country's Engineering, Electrical and Energy Planning areas. Born in Rio de Janeiro, she graduated in Electrical Engineering from the State University of Rio de Janeiro. She has specialization and post-graduate degrees in Power Systems from the Federal University of Itajubá, in Economic Engineering and Industrial Administration from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and a MBA in Management Development from IAG Executive Education at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro.

Director of the National Electric Energy Agency - ANEEL, Master's Degree in Law from the Brazilian Institute of Education, Development and Research - IDP and Bachelor of Laws from the Faculty of Legal Sciences Vianna Júnior in 1999. Director of the Brazilian Association of Regulatory Agencies - ABAR, he worked at Eletrobras Distribuição Rondônia/Energisa as a Lawyer in the Legal Department and later as Manager of the Electricity Market and Contracting Department. He held the position of Director of Regulation and Commercialization at Centrais Elétricas do Norte do Brasil S.A. - Eletronorte.

Markus Vlasits started as a consultant at McKinsey & Company in Germany and has been active in the solar PV industry for 17 years in several executive positions. In 2007-2009, he was Production Manager of crystallization and wafering at Q.Cells SE, Thalheim, Germany, where he reached a vice-presidential role in Sales Operations. Moving to Brazil in 2013, he started as CEO of Yingli Green Energy do Brasil. He teamed up with fellow executives to open Faro Energy, an investment company focusing on PV generation projects for commercial concerns, and was its Sales Director until 2018. In 2019, he was an independent consultant and helped start ABSOLAR's Energy Storage Workgroup. In 2020, founded NewCharge, an engineering company focused on energy storage projects for commercial clients in Brazil. He is also active as acts as a technical consultant and advisor for projects related to energy storage. In August 2023, he was elected president of board of directors of the Brazilian Association for Energy Storage Solutions (ABSAE). Markus also organizes energy storage events and conferences, and recently co-organized an energy storage conference panel for Intersolar South America 2021 in partnership with Solar Promotion.

Dr. Florian Wessendorf is Managing Director of Solar Promotion GmbH and Solar Promotion International GmbH. He is responsible for the global conference program and exhibitions in North America, South America and India. He has deep expertise in the solar industry, and formerly served as Managing Director of Photovoltaic Equipment at VDMA, where he was responsible for strategic development, market research and technology scouting, advocacy and policy advice, events, PR and marketing.

Engineering and projects executive with a 25-year career in the management/implementation of corporate ventures and projects in the O&G, chemicals, pulp and paper, electricity and EPC segments. I have solid experience in managing highly complex projects in terms of regulations, HSE, large multidisciplinary teams and CAPEX (in the order of R$1.10 billion) and modularization of greenfield/brownfield projects. I have also worked on greenfield projects for petrochemical plants and chlor-alkali plants, the execution and budgeting of thermal power plants and corporate projects to reduce costs and technology. Throughout my professional experience I have worked in various areas, such as: Portfolio and Program Management, Project Engineering, PMO, Economic Feasibility Studies and EPC Planning and Control. In PMO (Project Management Office) management, I led the preparation of strategic planning, project risk management, performance management and the application of Value Improving Practices. I have a degree in Chemical Production Engineering, an MBA in Business Management from ICEF/FGV, specialization in H2V from UFBA, and in Contract Management from FTE and certification as a Project Management Professional (PMP®).