A new report by Brazil´s Ministry of Development, Industry and Exterior Commerce has found that Rio de Janeiro state will receive a whopping US$18.45 billion in national and foreign investment over the coming years, well ahead of the $10.6 billion and $10.4 billion destined for Minas Gerais and Sao Paulo respectively.
The ‘Projects and Investments Announcements Report’ indicates that during 2010 $268.8 billion was announced for Brazil as a whole, with Rio’s lion’s share put down to the ongoing projects involving the major oil discoveries off the state’s coast, with 2016 Olympics preparations, surprisingly, taking a back seat to these massive investments, at least for the moment.
Importantly, major projects are distributed around the state and include: the Açu Superport north of Rio, which will receive investments of US$3.4 billion, Michelin investing $1.1 billion in a tyre plant on the outskirts of the capital, and energy industry engineering specialist Technip’s $700 million investment in the expansion of the port of Angra dos Reis.