Candiota Coal Mine

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Candiota Coal Mine (Mina de Candiota; Mina de Carvão Mineral Candiota) is an operating coal mine in Candiota, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Mine Name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Candiota Coal Mine	Candiota, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil	-31.546667, -53.726696 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the coal mine:

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Project Details

Table 2: Project status

Status	Status Detail	Opening Year	Closing Year
Operating	–	–	–

Table 3: Operation details

Note: The asterisk (*) signifies that the value is a GEM estimated figure.

Capacity (Mtpa)	Production (Mtpa)	Year of Production	Mine Type	Mining Method	Mine Size (km2)	Mine Depth (m)	Workforce Size
–	1.21	2023	Surface	Open Pit	–	50	388.9673118*

Table 4: Coal resources and destination

Total Reserves (Mt)	Year of Total Reserves Recorded	Total Resources (Mt)	Coalfield	Coal Type	Coal Grade	Primary Consumer/ Destination
1000	–	–	–	Subbituminous	Thermal	–

Table 5: Ownership and parent company

Note: To access more comprehensive data on energy ownership, please visit the Global Energy Ownership Tracker.

Owner	Parent Company	Headquarters
Companhia Riograndense de Mineracao [100.0%]	–	Brazil

Table 6: Historical production (unit: million tonnes per annum)

ROM or Saleable	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
ROM	–	–	–	–	1.22	–	1.21	–	–

Note: The above sections were automatically generated and are based on data from the Global Coal Mine Tracker August 2026 release.

Ownership Tree

This ownership tree is part of the Global Energy Ownership Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.

Background

The Candiota Coal Mine (Mina de Carvão Mineral Candiota) is located in the municipality of Candiota, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, approximately 380 km from Porto Alegre and 50 km from the border with Uruguay. It is owned by the state-owned mining company of Rio Grande do Sul, Companhia Riograndense de Mineração (CRM).

The Candiota deposit is the largest coal reserve in Brazil, holding approximately 38% of the country's total coal reserves. The mineable reserves accessible by open-pit methods, at depths of up to 50 metres, are estimated at 1 billion tonnes, while CRM's total coal potential across all concessions is reported at 2.53 billion tonnes.

The mine produces thermal coal supplied exclusively to the [[[Presidente Médici Candiota power station|Candiota III]] thermoelectric power plant, operated by CGT Eletrosul.

According to Mining Technology, the mine produced an estimated 1.218 MTPA of coal in 2020, and was the fourth-largest coal mine in Brazil as of 2021. The mine produced an estimated 1.21 million tonnes of coal in 2023, retaining its position among Brazil's five largest coal mines by output. Brasil Mineral reported CRM's net operating revenue at R$188,358,132 in 2023.

Coal-to-Chemicals

In March 2026, CRM sent a 20 kg coal sample from the Candiota deposit to China for laboratory analysis as part of feasibility studies for the "Metanol Candiota" project, a proposed coal gasification and petrochemical plant intended to produce methanol, urea and fertilisers in the municipality. The analysis, funded at approximately US$45,000 approved by the Candiota municipal council, formed part of a broader gasification and carbochemistry initiative. The plant was projected to enter operation around 2029.

Privatisation

In July 2019, the Rio Grande do Sul state legislature approved Law No. 15.300, authorising the state government to pursue privatisation of CRM. Unlike other state-owned companies privatised under the same legislative package — including CEEE and Sulgás — CRM's privatisation process had not advanced beyond the initial authorisation stage as of early 2026. The next required step, the signing of an advisory contract with development bank BNDES, still lacked a set timeline. In late 2023, the state government contracted consultancy Alvarez & Marsal to conduct a diagnostic assessment and evaluate future strategic options for the company. As of March 2026, privatisation had not been completed.

Legal Proceedings

On 22 August 2025, the 9th Federal Court of Porto Alegre issued a ruling suspending the operating licences of the Candiota mine and the Candiota III thermoelectric plant, following a public civil action brought by three environmental organisations. The court classified the case as structural climate litigation and found that the licences had been issued without adequate climate impact assessment. However, on 3 September 2025, the Federal Regional Court of the 4th Region (TRF4) suspended the effects of the ruling on an interim basis, allowing operations to resume immediately. The appellate judge found no evidence of state illegality sufficient to justify maintaining the suspension, citing potential damages of R$2 million per day, risk to energy supply and approximately 1,500 direct jobs in Candiota. The full merits of the case were pending review by the 4th Chamber of TRF4 as of early 2026.

Opposition Concerns

In March 2026, a health impact assessment by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and the Instituto Internacional Arayara found that operations at the Candiota coal complex — which included the Candiota mine operating at 1.46 MTPA — could cause up to 1,300 deaths and generate R$11.7 billion in healthcare costs by 2040, with pollution impacts projected to extend to Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. The study estimated that 430 deaths had already occurred between 2017 and 2025, with a further 870 projected between 2026 and 2040. Researchers attributed the health impacts primarily to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) released during coal combustion, extraction, handling and transport, linking exposure to lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ischaemic heart disease, stroke and diabetes.

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of world coal mines, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Mine Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.