Solar microgrid boosts açai economy in Amazonian community

A solar microgrid in an Amazonian community enables açai production and boosts the local economy, becoming a model for remote regions.

In a significant step forward for sustainability and economic development in the Amazon, an innovative solar microgrid is transforming the lives of residents in the Bela Conquista community, located within the Catuá-Ipixuna Extractive Reserve in Tefé, Amazonas.

This system, which combines photovoltaic energy with battery storage, does more than just provide reliable electricity; it unlocks the region’s productive potential, specifically for processing açai.

The initiative is a collaboration between the Amazônia Sustentável Foundation (FAS), the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEA), and the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), forming part of the Luz na Floresta (Light in the Forest) program.

The project in Bela Conquista, featuring 50 kWp of solar capacity and 165 kWh of storage, serves as a practical, scalable model for other remote communities across the vast Amazon rainforest, demonstrating how clean energy can act as a catalyst for prosperity.

Solar Energy Unlocks Açai’s Potential

The installation of the solar microgrid in Bela Conquista marks a turning point for the community’s açai processing facility, which had been in planning since 2017.

Previously, a reliance on diesel generators led to an intermittent and insufficient power supply, preventing equipment from running at full capacity and limiting the ability to add value to the fruit.

With the new infrastructure, the facility now has the capacity to produce up to 36,000 liters of açai annually.

This expanded capacity promises to significantly reduce fruit loss and increase the volume processed locally, thereby raising family incomes.

Daniel Gama, president of the processing facility project, emphasizes the importance of stable power:

The biggest bottleneck we faced in getting the venture up and running was the lack of reliable energy. We had many issues with the existing grid due to the condition of the distribution lines, and the electricity that reached the facility wasn’t enough to run all the machines.

With electrification, the community expects to purchase more fruit and process a larger portion of the local harvest, strengthening the economy.

Luciana Sena, vice-secretary of the unit, highlights the impact:

Now we will be able to produce more açai and we won’t face the same difficulties with production losses because we will have energy from the solar panels. We’ll be able to buy a larger volume of fruit, have more product to process at the facility, and increase family income.

A New Model for Universal Energy Access

The experience in Bela Conquista plays a crucial role in shaping energy policy, arriving at a time when the federal government is considering including productive uses of energy in universal access programs.

The vision is that access to electricity in isolated areas can go beyond residential and public service consumption, driving income-generating activities and promoting local development.

The Luz na Floresta program plans to implement up to 20 pilot projects over the next two to three years, benefiting around 25 communities.

Various economic activities are included, such as açai production, fishing, agriculture, and fruit processing.

The goal is to reach 80% energy availability and triple açai revenue in the served areas by using renewable energy as a lever for development.

Community Management and Sustainability

The project in Bela Conquista goes beyond installing equipment; it invests in training residents to manage, operate, and maintain the systems.

The idea is to gradually transfer responsibility for the assets to the communities themselves, promoting long-term autonomy and sustainability.

Thiago Carvalho, Renewable Projects Lead at FAS, emphasizes the integration of training from the outset:

The community members will receive all the training and capacity-building activities planned since the project’s inception. They will be responsible for the management, operation, and maintenance of the assets implemented in their communities.

For Luisa Valentim, Brazil Director at the Global Energy Alliance, the link between energy and the economy is fundamental:

This is an extraordinary project, in which we seek to use energy as a vector for prosperity, creating conditions for communities to remain in the territories they have chosen to live in, with quality of life and opportunities for income generation, all while contributing to the conservation of the Amazon Rainforest, an asset of fundamental importance for the entire planet.

Reducing Diesel Dependency and Environmental Impact

The expansion of microgrids represents an important step toward decarbonizing the energy matrix in isolated communities.

The 20 pilot projects of Luz na Floresta anticipate generating up to 1 GWh of solar energy per year, which will avoid the consumption of approximately 255,000 liters of diesel and the emission of 680 tons of CO₂.

The initiative addresses the critical reality that nearly 1 million Brazilians still lack access to electricity—more than 95% of them in the Amazon—while another 2 million rely on diesel generators.

In the Bela Conquista community, electrification not only strengthens extractive activities but also contributes to reducing deforestation and the pressure for less sustainable economic alternatives.

Luzia Pinto, one of the community matriarchs, celebrates the opportunity for a greener future:

Our hope is that people will reduce deforestation for planting and livestock, and that we can rely more and more on extractive activities, making use of what the forest already offers us. We have Brazil nuts and also açai, which is our main product today. We can harvest from nature without clearing land and without harming our forest.

Expansion to 600 Families and Public Policy

Beyond Bela Conquista, Luz na Floresta will extend to other strategic regions, such as the Serra da Moça Indigenous Territory (RR), the Nossa Senhora do Livramento (Uixi) community (AM), the Tamaniquá community (AM), and the Santa Maria do Boiaçu, Cachoeirinha, and Caicubi communities (RR).

The initiative is expected to benefit more than 600 families, providing clean energy solutions and boosting their productive activities.

The project also seeks to generate data and experiences that will serve as a reference for creating effective public policies for expanding electricity access in remote territories, consolidating the solar microgrid model as a vital tool for the sustainable development of the Amazon.

Virgilio Viana, General Superintendent of FAS, sees Bela Conquista as a beacon of hope:

Bela Conquista is a community that serves as a reference and deserves to be known by everyone who dreams of a fairer and more sustainable Amazon. It shows that it is possible. The great challenge is to multiply examples like this one and so many others we have had the privilege to support and strengthen throughout our history.