Extraordinary Secretariat For The Carbon Market Submits To Public Consultation A Draft Ordinance On The Timeline For The Implementation Of The MRV Obligations Under The SBCE

On July 28, 2026, the Extraordinary Secretariat for the Carbon Market of the Ministry of Finance (Secretaria Extraordinária do Mercado de Carbono or SEMC) submitted to public consultation a draft Ordinance (Portaria) providing for the implementation stages of the obligations relating to the Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by the sectors covered under the Brazilian Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading System (Sistema Brasileiro de Comércio de Emissões de Gases de Efeito Estufa or SBCE).

The draft represents a relevant step in the transition of the SBCE to its operational phase, as it sets out the timeline from which operators will become subject to the MRV obligations. This stage precedes the allocation of allowances and the effective functioning of the regulated market.

According to the draft, each stage of implementation of the MRV obligations will follow a sequence of actions organized in annual cycles. In the first year (A1), the obligated operator must submit the monitoring plan to the SBCE managing body for review and approval, in accordance with a specific act to be issued by the managing body. In the second year (A2), the effective monitoring of GHG emissions and removals must be carried out throughout the current calendar year, pursuant to the approved monitoring plan. In the third year (A3) and in subsequent years, the operator must maintain the effective monitoring and submit to the managing body the verified GHG Emissions and Removals Report relating to the previous calendar year.

The draft further provides that a specific act of the managing body will set forth the minimum content, the format for the presentation of information and the deadlines and procedures for the submission of the monitoring plan and the verified Emissions and Removals Report, at least 120 calendar days before the date on which the respective obligations start.
The draft includes sectoral coverage, which our previous Legal Update addressed. The draft provides for a gradual phase-in in three stages, whose sectors are identified according to the codes of the Brazilian National Classification of Economic Activities (Classificação Nacional de Atividades Econômicas or CNAE) listed in Annexes I and II:

• Stage 1 (A1 in 2027): Covers primary aluminum, including alumina production, iron and steel in integrated mills, cement, oil and natural gas exploration and production, oil refining, pulp and paper, and air transportation
• Stage 2 (A1 by 2029): Covers secondary aluminum, iron and steel in semi-integrated mills, the chemical industry, mining, the food and beverage industry, waste, sewage, ceramics, glass, and the power sector
• Stage 3 (A1 by 2031): Covers waterway, rail, and road transportation

The draft clarifies, however, that the reference to the CNAE codes in the annexes does not, in and of itself, subject all economic activities comprised therein to the MRV obligations. Rather, it is incumbent upon the managing body to define the regulated sources, facilities, activities, and operators, by means of specific regulation and taking into account the specificities of the MRV procedures applicable to each sector.

One aspect that deserves attention is the extent to which the draft defers to future regulation: it sets the timeline but assigns to the managing body the definition of the sources, facilities, activities and operators actually regulated, as well as of the content and of the deadlines for submission of the monitoring plan. For the Stage 1 sectors, whose A1 begins in 2027, the window for the issuance of such acts and for operators to prepare is narrow, especially in light of the minimum 120 calendar days’ notice provided for in the draft itself.

The public consultation will remain open until August 28, 2026.

In this scenario, companies potentially covered are advised to verify whether their activities fall within the CNAE codes of Annexes I and II, assess the impacts of the timeline on their monitoring systems, internal controls, and contracts, and consider submitting contributions in the public consultation.

The Environmental, Climate Change and Sustainability practice of Tauil & Chequer Advogados, in association with Mayer Brown, remains available to provide further clarification on the public consultation and on the implementation of the SBCE.