Brazil Accommodates China - At Its Own Expense?

Larry Rohter writes today about Brazil's plans to build a dam on the Xingu River, a tributary of the Amazon in the State of Pará. It appears that the case being made for this dam is Brazil's increased trade with China:

To satisfy the appetite of a rapidly growing industrial base, state-owned Chinese companies have begun involving themselves in mining projects in the eastern Amazon, ranging from aluminum and steel to nickel and copper. Processing each of those materials requires large amounts of electricity, and the government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, intent on forming what he calls "a strategic alliance" with China, is eager to perform that task.

The government defends the need for the dam as good for the community:

"This is an important public works for a country like ours, which needs to take better advantage of its energy potential," Márcio Zimmerman, director of planning and development for the Ministry of Mines and Energy, said in a phone interview. "The north is a region that is in the process of industrialization and development, and hydroelectric power is a long-term source of energy that is cheap and renewable."

It is understandable that Brazil, with its river systems that permeate the country would like hydroelectric power, but it is also a form of energy that Brazil has become almost slavishly dependent on. There is a price for this dependency and part of the price was evidenced a few years ago when a major drought led to extensive power outages. Much more could be done with wind and solar power in Brazil, especially given the extensive sunny and breezy coastline.

Rohter ended the article rather strangely:

In Brazil's industrialized south, little mention has been made of the dam's connection to Mr. da Silva's broader strategy of strengthening economic and political ties with China. That policy is coming under increasing criticism, especially in São Paulo, the nation's business capital, on the grounds that Brazil's national interests are being sacrificed.

That's a lot to open up and leave unpursued. Let's hope that this is not the last we hear on this.