Webinar - Business Opportunities in Brazil: Trade Mission for Green Companies

>> Welcome and thank you all for standing by.
Participants will be in a listen-only mode until the question and answer session.
At that time if you'd like to ask a question please press star then 1.
Today's call is being recorded.
If there any objections you may disconnect at this time.
I'd now like to turn the call over to Ms. Cora Dickson.
You may begin.
>> Thank you Lexie [phonetic].
Welcome to the webinar, Business Opportunities in Brazil: Trade Mission for Green Companies.
In this webinar you will learn the current status
and the future direction of US green exports to Brazil.
You'll find out why there is demand for US green technologies in the growing Brazilian market,
you'll identify market entry strategies and challenges, and we'll provide what you need
to know about the Export Green trade mission to Brazil.
A few quick notes before we begin.
The recording of this webinar as was mentioned
and the slides will be available after the event.
You will be notified by email.
We will have the opportunity to ask you for any quick clarifications after each section.
If you could please try to hold questions and comments until the main choice Q&A period
after all presentations we would very much appreciate it.
I was asked whether the-- we will be able to ask questions during the presentations.
The two methods of asking questions is to either press 1 and the operator will enter you
into a queue to ask a question or type in to the message box.
If you notice there is a Q&A button at the top of the screen.
I'd like to review the webinar outline before we begin.
I've mentioned we have three sections.
The first is "Why Brazil?"
featuring Lorrie Fussell, Desk Office of South America and Steven Bipes
from the Brazil-US Business Council.
Then we will talk about the Green Building sector featuring my presentation
and also a presentation from the Brazil-US Business Council.
And finally, we will present to you why to join this trade mission.
Miguel Hernandez will be joining us from Sao Paulo and Kathleen McInerney
from the Brazil-US Business council and Trade Roots.
The first speaker is Lorrie Fussell.
She is in the Market Access and Compliance Division
at the International Trade Administration and she will be discussing about Brazil in general.
Lorrie I turn it over to you.
>> Right, thank you Cora.
Hi! Again, my name is Lorrie Fussell and I'm the Brazil Desk Officer here
at the Department of Commerce.
During my presentation what I'll be doing is kind of laying out what--
why Brazil is such a key market right now.
I'm gonna start first by talking about the Department of Commerce.
And then lastly I'm gonna wrap up with helpful resources.
The colleagues that will be participating in the webinar will focus on more the detail
on the further highlighting the mission itself.
Next slide please.
So the International Trade Administration the way we fit into the big scheme
of the trade world is that we're helping to promote trade and investment for companies.
We strengthened industry competitiveness and ensure fair trade for all companies.
We're broken up into four bureaus here.
Manufacturing and services focuses on the competitiveness side.
And the industry exports were broken up either by sectors such as energy,
service, health, and consumer goods.
And under the US and Foreign Commercial Service we have the trade promotion angle
for our companies with over a hundred US offices throughout the US
which are called the US Export Assistance Centers.
And for those aren't aware of these, these are a great resource
for you to really tap into domestically.
We also have offices around the world.
Miguel Hernandez is our-- one of our commercial officers and will speak later
and could give more of a detail
of the opportunities the Foreign Commercial Service offers.
We have Market Access and Compliance which is where I actually fall
into where we have more the complaince side and we help to obtain market access
for American firms and workers who are invested overseas.
We ensure compliance by four nations under our trade agreements as well
and ultimately are mandated to identify and overcome these trade barriers.
Lastly, we have the import administration which deals with the anti-dumping issues.
And again, the four bureaus really help to promote the interest of US companies overseas.
Next slide please.
Thank you.
The National Export Initiative was first made public during President Obama's State
of the Union Address.
This has really been a driver this last year.
It's been a critical effort that will lead to long term sustainable
and economic growth for the United States.
Over the past year we've been making great strides
to implement the National Export Initiative, often known as the NEI.
US exports to Brazil continue to grow due to our strong relationship.
Last year we reached 34 billion and--
billion dollars in exports was an increase of 36 percent.
And this increased effort under the NEI has actually three arms which are advocacy,
under the commercial service; increased access to credit for company;
as well as the trade enforcement and market access.
We also have the highest level of political engagement with Brazil that supports the NEI.
This past March, President Obama traveled to the country with a number of his cabinet members
where a number of new initiatives were concluded.
Some of these initiatives include the US-Brazil agreement on trade
and economic cooperation as well as open skies agreement.
And lastly most pertinent to this group would be the Joint Initiative on Urban Sustainability
which will allow the integration of ongoing bilateral efforts focused on expanding
and creating new markets for a green and smart infrastructure.
We also have a number of well established dialogues
between our two countries including the commercial dialogues as well
as the US-Brazil CEO forum that the Department of Commerce leads.
Next slide, please.
So why Brazil?
It's important to know that it's roughly half
of the South American territory not many people recognized how large it is but with a population
over 190 million you could really see the importance of the purchasing power
that has grown in the middle class could really make a big difference
for companies looking to invest.
Very diverse sectors and although the trade mission is focused
on environmental technology I would really be remiss if I didn't focus on some
of the key factors which include automobiles and parts, machinery, equipment, fuel,
textile, shoes, cement, and iron ore.
Total trade between the US and Brazil last year was 59 billion dollars.
Those are key markets for the United States.
We also have a very strong trade relationship as I mentioned earlier and Brazil's living one
of its best economic moments in recent history as a result
of their sound government fiscal policies.
They're one of the first countries to actually get out of the financial crisis
and they have a huge construction boom throughout Brazil.
But one thing also important to know is that the population distribution is key,
90 percent of the population live within 500 kilometers at the coastline,
making it easily accessible through all the ports.
Next slide please.
Now, how easy is it to do business in Brazil.
It's important to focus on the opportunities, obviously, in Brazil but also to mention
that Brazil ranks 127 out of the 183 countries and the World Bank "Doing business" report.
Such report is actually really key to seeing how Brazil ranks in comparison to other countries.
Here on the slide you could see that India is ranked a 134, China comes in at 43,
again Brazil falls in between that, 127.
The United States who isn't shown on this but they rank-- we rank 5, excuse me.
And of course the lower number in ranking means that the regulatory environment is conducive
to the operation of all businesses in the country.
Next slide, please.
So this report looks at-- these indicators noted here, the importance of starting a business
and how quickly you're able to do that, paying taxes, getting credit.
Unfortunately, if you could see trading across borders, Brazil drops 16 points from last year
which is notable, closing the business takes a bit longer as well.
But they did improve in dealing with construction permits
and construction has been one for the key areas were Brazil have been focusing their
acceleration growth program.
So they have made some movements towards-- towards fixing some of delays.
Next slide, please.
I don't wanna get into too much on the challenges and barriers 'cause one
of my colleagues will discuss in more detail related to the sector.
But again, I would be remiss if we didn't focus on some of the issues.
For companies to invest you need to be aware that there is a pretty strenuous tariff
and custom barriers and then onerous licensing and regulatory requirements.
This is something to be aware of.
But again, there're many opportunities that surpass the challenges but it's important
to do your homework before investing in the country.
>> Next slide, please.
Some of the strategies that I'd like to leave you with if you're looking to invest in Brazil
and haven't been in the market, is for you to invest
in developing the relationships within country.
Brazil is very much a relationship-based country.
Again, do your homework and be patient.
Things may take a little bit longer in Brazil but it's definitely an area where you--
there's many opportunities for you to invest.
Consult good legal and tax advisers.
Again, the tax system can be very complicated and we hear oftentimes from companies
that this is one of the areas where they focused most of their time.
And also consider establishing a local partner, this is very important as well.
And lastly, make sure that you're trying to work in the language in Brazil.
Of course Portuguese whether it's marketing material or just attending meetings,
do plan to have either an interpreter or someone who would be able to assist in that.
There are many business folks do speak English.
It makes a big difference when you obviously speak the language
or have the capability of doing so.
I'd like to lastly review with some helpful resources.
These are some helpful links, the Department of Commerce site of course
of trade.gov will be helpful in giving you some background information.
We have the State Department link as well
and US Trade Representative Office has a national trade estimate report
which gives the impact of foreign barriers to trade.
It's, again, good to be aware of what you're getting into.
Small Business Administration or companies who are looking
to export, this is a great link as well.
And lastly, I'll leave you with the intellectual property site
on the Brazil toolkit which is stopfakes.gov.
So again I'd like to just summarize my presentation by thinking
that Brazil has offered a lot of new opportunities.
For us, it's a big market, big economy, and we have some great opportunities to do our--
a really strong relationship with them.
I am-- neglected to add that President Obama's trip last year, obviously--
or excuse me, last two months ago was very helpful
in getting these relationships to continue forward obviously.
With that, I leave you and move towards-- I guess Cora, will you be introducing Steven?
>> Yes. Thank you very much Lorrie.
And the next speaker is Steven Bipes who is the Executive Director of the US Section
of the Brazil-US Business Council.
As you can see, he has an extensive background and I'd like to turn it over to him to talk more
about why Brazil from the perspective of the private sector.
>> Thank you, Cora.
Good morning everyone.
Next slide, please.
I'm gonna be talking about indeed the private sector perspective
of the bilateral commercial relationship and providing a perspective
of the information that Lorrie shared.
Just briefly about the council.
We're private sector organization.
This is our 35th anniversary and we're dedicated
to promoting free trade investment between the two countries.
Certainly, China and India tend to be top of the agenda for lot of companies
who often overlook just the huge opportunity for business for US companies in Brazil.
We have a number of partners on the ground in Brazil that helped the National Confederation
of Industry, the American Chamber of Commerce and via this network we're able to communicate
to both governments with the unique voice to help improve the business environment.
Next slide, please.
Just a flavor of the leadership of the council,
two sections on the US Section International Paper which is also John Faraci
in the US-Brazil CEO Forum; and Robson Andrade the head
of the Brazilian National Confederation of Industry.
Next slide.
And it's often a question that we could ask why Brazil and reinforcing Lorrie's point.
It's forgotten sometimes that Brazil is continental in scale,
in many ways a sister country to the United States, larger than the contiguous 48.
Big chunks of Europe would also fit inside of Brazil.
A few years ago just by stroke of the pen,
the President of Brazil created a new National Park that's larger than Belgium.
Fifth geographically in the world and not only making it rich in natural resources but also
as the population filled out the landscape, it's a huge consumer market as well.
Next slide.
Brazil is only number two in GDP, among the BRIC countries 1.6 trillion.
Next slide.
And after China and India like Jupiter and Saturn, you look at the demographics
of population Brazil is number 3 in the BRIC countries with 192 million, nearly 200 million.
Next slide.
And if you look at the population growth, Brazil is only the second of the BRIC countries as far
as growth with even Russia being negative.
What do all these graphs add up to combined?
Next slide.
And so Brazil has the second highest GDP per capita out the BRIC countries at 8,360 dollars.
And under the Lula administration, the previous president
of Brazil you had very successful social policies reducing the lowest economic class
in Brazil which was about 30 percent of the population, now only 15 and they've all moved
up into the next economic class upward now buying microwaves and motorcycles
and consumer goods, huge burgeoning market for US companies.
Next slide.
And just to put Brazil into scale.
Brazil's got 27 states.
One state alone, Sao Paulo although, yes, it's roughly 34 percent of the total GDP of Brazil,
it as an economy Sao Paulo state alone is larger
than every Latin-American Country except for Mexico.
That starts to put Brazil into context.
Next slide.
You look at the some of the trade numbers Brazil-EU, Brazil-China,
Brazil-U.S. China surpassed US last year as the largest trading partner of Brazil.
You can see that the US runs a trade surplus with Brazil, 27 billion in 2010 alone,
US exports to Brazil and that continues to grow.
Next slide.
Why is Brazil so hot this year?
Next bullet.
Economic growth was very rapid last year, 7.5, continue to expect roughly
at least five percent this year that the mega events coming up, certainly World Cup
and Olympics, but often overlooked: the confederation games,
the military games, the special Olympics as well.
Those are fixed in time and what the rule of thumb
of project management you can have something fast, good and cheap - pick two.
There's not a lot of time.
So there's lot of opportunities for companies to get in partner with Brazilian companies
to help prepare the country for these world class events.
Brazil is gonna be spending 1.3 trillion in infrastructure by 2022.
And within the state of Rio, pre-salt and gas discoveries are making Brazil one
of the hottest areas in the world for those who travel to Brazil with some frequency.
You'll know that there's an air bridge now, a shuttle that goes between the Houston
and Rio just for that strong connection in the oil and gas sector.
Next slide, please.
Reinforcing some of the Lorrie's points.
For those who have dealt with red tape around the world, prepare yourself.
Brazil is daunting.
Not to scare anyone and we-- but we do like to prepare all of the companies who are in Brazil
and look to increase their investments or who haven't yet gone to Brazil to be prepared.
There's a lot of revenue to be made, a lot of significant bottom line
but homework is required particularly on the front end.
Lorrie mentioned the World Bank rank of doing - ease of doing business report, 127 out of 183.
Tax in particular, tax and customs tend to be most difficult area.
The Brazilians themselves will blame the Portuguese inheritance,
the centralized legal code, and the overbuilt regulatory system but they still persist today
after many years of independence from Portugal.
And anything from opening business, to closing a business, to very simple things
of getting documents; in the US where you go could provide a document or a copy to document.
In Brazil, you need to get an authenticated copy, get your signature recognized.
These are just things that can be dealt with, but they need to be dealt with on the front end.
What we often tell companies is work with partners, trusted partner and you can work
with the Department of Commerce, the Gold Key Program to find an appropriate partner
but also get some legal counsel and get accounting and a tax consulting assistance
to build your business models, scrub it down and run through the different scenarios.
You've got-- We say companies need to be ready to dance the samba.
Don't build your business plan, carve it into the stone.
Have every expectation that your assumptions may change in your first year and your second year.
So tax rate may go from level X to level Y. You may need to move or you import products instead
of shipping to Santo-- Sao Paulo, you need to ship into Victoria and Espirito Santo,
should be ready and flexible with your business plans.
Next slide, please.
I leave three links here.
The Brazil Council, Export Green as well in supporting the Export Green project,
the Department of Commerce, and also our program of work.
There's probably about 50 different policy areas that the Brazil council focuses
on from customs modernization to infrastructure,
getting a bilateral tax treaty, any number of issues.
>> And all of those issues, the private sectors working with both governments
to address are included in that program at work.
So that's just the summary of information.
I'm happy to answer any questions.
>> Okay, and as a matter of fact, we reached the end of the first section.
And as I mentioned before, we will open it up if there are any quick clarifications
that the audience may-- would like to ask rather than wait until the Q&A?
So Lexie, are there-- is there anyone in the queue?
>> Not at this time.
>> Okay. I'm going to check the-- I don't see any typed questions.
Okay, well, with that I guess we'll move on to the next section.
I hope that everyone is enjoying our webinar so far and not having any technical difficulties.
I have noticed a few calls coming in on my phone and I hope everybody understands.
Although my information was contact information for the webinar I am unable to answer any calls
about technical difficulties at this time.
And in any case, we're moving on to the section that we call "Why Green Build?"
And this is my presentation and you can see my bio.
I will not toot my own horn.
But it is my pleasure to talk with you today about export opportunities
for green building products and all the related products and services that will go
into green buildings in Brazil and the prospects for that in the Brazilian market.
But first I'd like to say a few words
about the Market Development Cooperative Program which we call an MDCP.
Export Green is an MDCP and a great example of one as a matter of fact, we like to think.
MDCPs establish a partnership between ITA and non-profits
such trade association, chambers of commerce.
We have competition of proposals for the projects.
But projects should promote trade and strengthen US industry's competitive position.
We only have a handful of these every year and the awardees do have
to match on a 2 to 1 ratio, the award.
But on average for every dollar that ITA invests
in the MDCP awards our partners help US industry generate 125 dollars in exports.
And ITA is currently coordinating 5 of these MDCP awards
in the clean tech sector including water, smart grids, clean tech in general.
So we believe that just-- that's an indication that this sector is one
that both the private sector and the government feel has a lot
of potential for being competitive in trade.
In terms of demands for clean technologies here are some facts about Brazil.
I think that it is well known about the use of renewable energy in Brazil and--
especially the adoption of ethanol.
And traditional environmental sectors have opportunities as well.
Focusing a little bit on clean energy trade for a moment here.
We are developing a method of tracking various technologies as well as renewable fuels
and these-- according to our latest statistics in 2010, this was how the trade
between the US and Brazil stacked up.
It's hard to say, for example on the wind sector, there may be some companies--
some American companies on there who may be exporting back to the United States.
This is difficult and also the biomass technologies.
I do believe we have a little more trade in that area than it appears, but it's difficult
to know-- to track because they're not specific tracking codes for those technologies.
And obviously ethanol, you may be surprised to know in the renewable fuels category
that actually we are exporting to Brazil in this area as well.
The clean tech demand in Brazil as it relates to green buildings, what does it mean?
Well, we think that there are a few prospects we could identify at the outset
and of course the trade mission will help further refine those prospects
but in these areas, energy efficiency, onsite renewable energy,
water, and consulting and engineering.
We believe that there are opportunities and that US companies should try
to take advantage of these opportunities.
There's been a lot of talk about the green buildings that opportunities
from the World Cup and the Olympic Games.
This is especially due to the fact
that the Brazilian National Development Bank has programs related to the World Cup
to encourage the use of sustainable technologies and energy efficiency.
There has been a lot of emphasis on LEED certification and not just the sport venues
but all of the related buildings.
There are other indirect aspects as well in the area.
There'll be clean ups, there will be transportation improvements,
just enormous opportunities because of all of the international attention
and all of the international visitors, it's a chance for Brazil to upgrade in many areas
and they're, as noted here, working on revitalizing a port and that
through a partnership private-- private-public partnership will also be LEED certified.
These are just some examples.
In the area of smart grids, this is one in which, obviously,
we do trade in the electric grid power equipment market but in terms of the ICT
that will help change the power grid into a smart grid, these are examples of some
of the opportunities especially when it comes to controlling the building's lighting,
building's heating and cooling, other energy controls.
This is an area in which maybe some companies weren't thinking of it as green building
but we'd like to encourage them to consider joining the mission.
Now, export challenges as mentioned by Lorrie, even though there is a high demand
for green technology in Brazil, there are--
there are challenges, nontariff barriers such as local content requirements.
There is stiff competition even from the Brazilian companies.
The complex tax system and sometimes it's just difficult to connect with international buyers
and that's an area that my colleague, Miguel, will talk about later.
I'd like to offer a few suggestions, if you'd like to learn more or know some events.
These slides will be available later.
And finally, I just wanna point out for renewal energy
and energy efficiency companies in particular.
We created an export portal.
This is an interagency portal including not just ITA resources but all--
all kinds of resources, USTDA, EXIM Bank.
It's everything.
We have news and events and market research and we have an online guide which is sort
of more friendly to the renewable energy and energy efficiency companies
that offers examples from that sector.
There are a few products geared towards that sector
that maybe more will be coming out, we'll be adding to the guide.
So I wanted to make sure everyone was aware of that.
And that finishes my presentation.
And we have another presentation.
Reeve you're on the line, right?
I'll be turning it over to Reeve next.
[ Pause ]
>> Hello.
>> I guess you can't hear me.
>> Now, we can.
>> Yes. You had it on mute.
Okay. Reeve, I will turn over to you to now talk about the--
in more detail about factors of driving the green building market in Brazil.
>> Excellent.
Well, I'm-- I wanna begin by saying I'm at a--
the International Sugar Organization Annual Conference and there was lamenting
about the fact that the US is actually exporting-- speaking of exporting green,
we're exporting biofuels to Brazil
because Brazil doesn't have enough ethanol to supply it's domestic market.
So we're already exporting green.
I chaired the Infrastructure Working Group at the Brazil-US Business Council
and in that context, have done some checking into the market for green building in Brazil.
And so my presentation will be specifically on that.
Next slide.
The green building market in Brazil is extending very quickly
and it's already achieved a pretty sizable-- some sizable numbers.
Brazil is fifth in the world, in LEED projects behind China,
the United Arab Emirates, USA, and Canada.
And 23 projects have been completed already.
245 are in some stage of evaluation for certification.
If you've ever been to Sao Paulo, it's one of the largest cities
in the world and it's all skyscrapers.
It is a forest of skyscrapers and it's growing quickly.
Old buildings are being replaced.
New office buildings are going up willy-nilly, and there is high demand on--
particularly in the top end commercial buildings for sustainable green construction.
Next slide, please.
>> This is-- It's largely driven by prestige.
The Brazilian corporate community is very aware of the--
of environmental trends, very conscious of it.
We saw this in the election last fall when the Green Party candidate took 20 percent
of the vote, first round in the election.
And-- but they're also looking at it from a practical standpoint.
The long-- over the long term, the savings on energy efficiency is substantial.
Next slide, please.
But recently, a number of federal and local legislative
and regulatory initiatives are providing additional incentives for green building.
First of all, the Tribunal das Contas which is a--
sort of a general accounting office in Brazil has interpreted procurement legislation to mean
that the public good is also served when the environment is protected in a public bid.
So one of the factors now that government agencies will consider
when evaluating projects is environmental factors.
How is this playing out?
Well, the Ministry of Planning has already begun to develop a body of new regulations
that will govern green buildings.
All new federal buildings will have new regulations that incentivize purchasing products
with a low environmental impact ranging from water use to how they source the electricity.
They have a preference for renewable sources and also using building materials
with a low impact on environment.
This extends not just to Brasilia, but you should also think
about federally funded projects throughout Brazil, for example the buildings going
up around the Olympics and World Cup related projects including the 12--
the 10 publically funded stadiums in-- by 2014.
Also low-income housing is a major program of the-- started under the Lula administration
and has continued under Dilma Rousseff administration.
Billions and billions of dollars of investment
and they prioritize environmentally friendly projects.
Next slide.
At the municipal level, there's quite a bit legislative and regulatory activity as well.
In Sao Paulo and Curitiba-- Curitiba is one of Brazil's most advanced cities in terms
of its quality of life, and overall modernity.
The local law now requires all building designs to include plans of controlling waste
and disposing of residues both from the process of construction and then also
after the building is completed making sure that waste is disposed of properly.
There are also three municipalities in Sao Paulo, Guarulhos, Sorocaba,
and Sao Carlos that have enacted tax rebates on property tax for buildings
that collect rain water, recycle used water,
and generate electricity locally via renewable sources, solar or wind, et cetera.
And this is a trend.
Sao Paulo is a trendsetter in this respect, and we fully expect similar legislation
to be enacted in municipalities throughout Brazil.
Next slide.
For US exporters, the principal opportunities will be in technologies mainly hardware
but also software in energy efficiency for buildings;
controls; sensors; and metering devices.
These are items that that Brazil does not produce in appreciable quantity.
There's an export opportunity for you there.
There's also an opportunity for you to invest with a joint venture partner
or in a green building project in Brazil.
The government will be very friendly to see those kinds of projects.
To limited extent, there is an opportunity for US services exporters particularly partnership
with local firms that may not have the experience to design green with efficiency
in using a little bit of technology.
Next slide.
This graph in Portuguese shows you how Green LEED projects are currently distributed
through Brazil states.
The Pac-Man piece is Sao Paulo, 66 percent of Brazilian LEED projects are in the state
of Sao Paulo and I would wager the vast majority of these are in the city of Sao Paulo.
That makes deciding where you want to target your efforts pretty easy.
The next biggest slice is Rio.
And the third, I believe is-- it looks as if it's Parana.
So that the Export Green program will be targeting Sao Paulo specifically
and I would encourage those of you who are operating in the green building sectors
if you consider participating in Export Green delegation to Sao Paulo late summer, early fall.
Next slide.
This also shows you what kinds of buildings are getting LEED certified.
The biggest piece is commercial buildings, commercial real estate followed
by distribution centers and other types.
So, your focus should be on commercial real estate but be aware
that public buildings particularly after some of the new federal legislation
and regulations will be an increasingly large slice to this month.
Next slide.
For those of you in the Green Building sector, an excellent first point
of contact would be a fellow by the name of Felipe Faria who is in charge of Government
and Institutional Relations with the Green Building Council of Brazil
which is the affiliate of the Green Building Council in United States,
and for practical matters on how to export to the market and how to find local partners
for distribution, production, et cetera.
Talk to your Department of Commerce Representative in-- throughout Brazil.
Next slide.
This is my contact information.
I'd be happy to take any questions you have and, you know, feel free to followup
with me afterwards if there's any way that I can help.
Thank you.
>> Thank you Reeve.
Very, very interesting presentation, really focusing--
putting the focus quite well on the purpose of the mission and the opportunities in Brazil.
This is the end of the section of "Why Green Build?"
and another opportunity to ask any clarifications
on the presentation you've just heard.
You can choose to type your question in the Q&A box.
I think I see one pop up.
I believe this is actually question which might be answered in the next section, if it's okay.
I'm trying-- trying to get it to open but the question is how do we apply for the MDCP?
But that will be answered in the next section and--
I'm sorry I'm having a little bit technical difficulties.
I don't know if Lexie can help me.
There's another question, will the PowerPoint be sent to the webinar participants?
Yes, I believe I covered that one already.
The answer is yes.
And we have a blank question from another person.
I'm afraid I can't answer blank questions.
Okay, moving on, you will have opportunities to ask question at the very end of our webinar
and I'd like to move on to Miguel Hernandez who is joining from Sao Paulo.
He's with the commercial service and he can tell you about how the commercial service is going
to work together with the Brazil-US Business Council
to make this trade mission the best ever.
Now over to you Miguel.
>> Thank you Cora.
Yes, I will-- my presentation will basically discuss how we can help you increase your sales
in Brazil and then give you a concrete example of how we did that,
and so that you should seriously consider applying to participate
in the Export Green Trade Mission.
Next. Next.
[ Pause ]
>> Next.
[ Pause ]
>> Okay. Right, next.
Okay. Alright.
Okay, Cora, have you-- are you transferring the slides?
>> Yes.
>> Okay, thank you.
Alright.
>> And so, first, it's important in Brazil to actually meet your potential business partners.
It's such an important part of the culture
and I think the trade mission here will provide many potential business contacts.
[ Pause ]
>> It can be overwhelming is it's your first time.
And here at the US Embassy, US Consulate, Commercial Service, we can provide a lot
of the counseling to help you overcome some of the challenges
that were described earlier in the presentation.
And also, we do have ways of going through lists of potential business contacts
and prescreening them so that they could lead to, you know, more business for you.
So let me-- next.
And let me discuss a little bit more of just to explain who we are.
We're basically part of the foreign service where commercial diplomats were located
in 80 countries and our main objective is to increase US exports.
At the end of the year, we report to Congress, you know, how many US companies that we have,
what was the export value, and we also-- you know, list how many commercial diplomacy cases
or problems were we able to resolve.
And we do work as a team because we work closely with our colleagues
in the US Export Assistance Centers in the US and I think it's important for you to find
out who that-- where that office is because--
and they can advise you on worldwide opportunities.
Next. Okay, what do we do exactly?
We basically, I consider us a little bit as a consultants, you know, within the government
because we are looking to find, identify opportunities that are out there that will,
you know, increase the chances of US companies of, you know,
winning those contracts or winning those sales.
So we do a lot of the market research.
We do advocacy, trade events like this trade mission which Kathleen will describe
in more detail and we are able to identify qualified buyers and Distributors.
Next. Okay.
And so this is just a couple of services that we provide and--
and I think here, I will focus more on the Gold Key matchmaking
and that's a very specialized program, again, where we would go through a list
of potential contacts that are interested in your product and then prescreen it
and with consultation with you, we would then set up those meetings.
And in our office in Sao Paulo and within Brazil, we have over 40 commercial specialists
who covers the-- you know, the specific sectors.
So, you would be working with them to, you know, answer any of your questions
or to identify any more business leads.
We also do advocacy, we assist US companies when there are trade issues or, you know,
for example, or any regulations that may negatively impact US companies.
We do a lot of that work as well.
Next. And here, and it's important to start with your US Export Assistance Center
and as I mentioned earlier, because they can provide you advise on other types of missions
that are taking place worldwide, other opportunities and they also can advise you
on market entry in other countries.
So this is where it starts with our local offices in the US.
Next. And then, this would be an example of how we would work together with you
if you were to participate on this mission.
We would first work to identify key partners and we have a lot of important contacts in the,
you know, Brazilian business community.
We know all of the key trade associations and so we have a good understanding,
firm understanding of where the greatest demand is.
So we will first have, you know, a list of potential companies that are interested
in your product and we would also advise you on the market, provide you briefings.
And after your meetings which would in one day could probably be four meetings per day
and we would also provide post counseling, and advice on how to do the follow up to ensure
that you are able to finalize some of those sales.
Next. Okay, so now, let me give you an example.
There's this company called WindStream out of Indiana.
They started this process by first contacting our Export Assistance Center in Indiana
and after learning more about the product they viewed that the--
that were a strong opportunity in Finland.
And so this technology, as you see in the picture there,
it's a micro-wind turbine which generates energy.
And so of course with the large windmills, you know, they're not--
they don't work well of course in larger urban areas.
These can fit in the urban setting.
And we, as one of the first companies that were interested
at the time were the US Embassy there.
They purchase those and in a way was able to showcase your technology
because this are very durable, they can face the Nordic--
harsh Nordic winters and they produce off grid energy sources.
And so, next slide.
Next, they-- we later learned about this technology here in Brazil
and our specialist identified potential partners here in Brazil-- sales for them in Brazil.
And so there were a couple of conference calls.
There were couple of counseling sessions and we were able to facilitate a 10 million dollar deal
for these-- for 30,000 wind turbine units in Brazil.
So once you get-- So we view that as a success because you can follow, you know,
a lot of these strategies are working with the US Commercial Service in various countries.
And, you know, it could lead to sales in various other copies.
And then for us, it was important
because it also resulted in, you know, more jobs in Indiana.
It was a win-win because Brazil also was looking for, you know, this new innovative technology.
And last-- And at last, audited figures for how many export successes we generated.
They come from--
[ Audio Glitch ]
>> -- worker increases those sales.
Yes.
>> Sorry, we lost you for a moment there.
Okay, just making sure you're still on the line.
>> Okay. Yes so, just what I was saying, we do have a strong track record for assisting
in increasing sales for these companies.
Next. Here, I'll just-- I included this slide just to let you know a little bit more
of how we work with other US government agencies overseas.
One of the main complaints we heard from companies is that, you know,
they found interested buyers but other countries would offer better financing terms.
And so, Export-Import Bank which has visit-- who visited Brazil, the chairman is President Obama.
He announced a 1 billion dollar line of credit for infrastructure projects related
to the World Cup and it can include green technology.
And so what are the points I'd like to highlight here.
One, that it is the EXIM Bank is committed to small business exporters and they highlighted
that 85 percent of their-- the people will use these--
their credit line are SMEs and they did say that their turnaround time
for decision is under a 100 days.
And so, what are some of the parts they offer working capital guarantees,
export credit, insurance.
So that's important just to know for you as a resource.
Another way-- Another important agency that we work
with was the US Trade and Development Agency.
They do number-- numerous programs in Brazil.
One that I'd like to highlight has to with smart grid.
In Brazil, it's at a very developmental stage.
So they are-- the Brazilian government, utilities, they're out looking
to see what is the best model they could follow.
So, we work with the USTDA to identify the smart grid sectors, one of our priorities.
>> And they agreed to fund a reverse trade mission.
That meant that all of the key Brazilian regulators, standards developers,
utilities went to the US and they saw all of the technology
that was being used in the smart grid area.
How it was being deployed.
And they also signed an agreement to do a feasibility study where, you know,
they can use some of the US technology to run tests, to see and to gain data
so that they could then make decisions on which smart grid regulatory regime they'll follow.
And which again, if they choose more the US side,
of course that will create more opportunities for US exporters.
Next. Okay.
So just to conclude, I think that the trade mission that Kathleen will describe
in more detail would be very worthwhile because you will get these types of meetings
with prescreens, potential business partners,
and there's a huge demand for, you know, US Green Technology.
Just this past few months we assisted some of the large Brazilian construction company
to do site visits in the US to learn more about these, you know,
green building technologies used in-- in use because they definitely feel the pressure
to meet a lot of the deadlines related, again, to the World Cup and the Olympics.
So next, thank you very much.
>> Thank you Miguel.
And last but not least, Kathleen McInerney will be telling you all
about the upcoming Export Green Trade Mission.
And I'm sure you all have a lot of questions.
In fact, I've seen a few already and hopefully her presentation will answer those questions.
But if not, we will be opening up to question and answer session after her presentation.
Take it away Kathleen.
>> Thank you Cora.
Can I have the first slide please?
The first thing I wanna talk about is Export Green and what it is.
Export Green is an MDCP project as Cora had explained
in the first presentation regarding helping companies export.
So why does MDCP exist?
It exists because big companies in the US, they don't really need help exporting.
They have the resources they need in-house to be able
to successfully get their products into new markets.
However, small and medium sized companies
around the United States do need some government assistance
to take advantage of the opportunities abroad.
So the MDCP program exists to help small
and medium-sized companies get their products into new markets.
This particular MDCP project is a joint initiative
of the International Trade Administration, the National Chamber Foundation, TradeRoots,
and the Brazil-US Business Council.
It's run by the Brazil-US Business Council in collaboration
with all of the partners named above.
And the goal of Export Green is to increase US exports
of green products and services to Brazil.
And why green?
We chose to focus on green technologies not only because it's a huge growing sector
in the United States but also because President Obama has made it one
of the focus points of his administration.
So the first step we took in starting out the Export Green project was to take a survey
of small and medium-sized companies around the United States to find
out what green technologies could succeed in the Brazilian markets.
The target sectors that came out of the surveys include energy efficiency,
renewable energy, and green building.
So, all green companies qualify for this Export Green project.
And green companies as we're defining them are companies that have clear technologies
or services than their competitors.
So it's a very broad definition and even if you don't fall into one
of the target sectors I mentioned, you would still qualify for the grants.
Next slide, please.
Our partners on the Export Green project include the International Trade Administration,
TradeRoots, and Brazil Council.
There are also good partners on the ground in Brazil.
And this is American Chamber of Commerce for Brazil
and the National Confederation of Industries.
Also, we can't get out to the US companies quite as well
if we didn't have the local partners that we do.
And I just put up a list of some logos of our local partners.
But I guarantee you, wherever you are, we have a partner in your state and we work with them
to try and bring these opportunities to you.
Next slide.
Here the program highlights for the Export Green projects include six business forums
that will be held around the United States.
We actually launched these forums in May, in Denver and in Idaho.
Each of these programs are customized to the area, so that one includes experts
from the area not only in exporting but also in the sectors that are applicable to that area.
And why are we doing business forums around the United States?
Not only to reach the companies but also to teach companies
about why they should be exporting.
95 percent of customers around the world are located outside the borders
of the United States.
So it's very important for US companies who would like to expand their sales to look outside
of our borders to find new customers.
Not only that, but jobs related to exports pay on average 18 percent higher
than jobs not related to exports.
Finally, companies that have exports have proven to be more stable in turbulent economies.
And so it's a good way to find a stable source of income for your company.
We will also be doing webinars.
This is the first of six webinars.
The following webinars will provide more targeted information about sectors.
So please stay tuned for more information on those.
We also have educational resources such as our website and newsletters.
And as we go through the project, we'll be collecting success stories of companies
who are successful in the Brazilian market
and we will feature those in our Faces of Trade series.
Next slide.
We are also having two trade missions to Brazil.
The first we're discussing today which is the Green Build Trade Mission
and the second will be identified and taken-- take part in the first quarter of 2012.
We have two Brazilian buyer missions to the United States
who are bringing Brazilian companies to the US to find green technologies and services
that they can purchase in the United States to bring back to Brazil.
The first of those will be RETECH which is the Renewable Energy Technology Conference,
September 20th to the 22nd.
And we'll also be conducting Brazilian government procurement forums.
We'll be identifying US trade shows in the United State
to feature Brazilian procurement officers from the Brazilian government to speak
about procurement process in Brazil and also what types
of different services the Brazilian government is currently looking for.
Next slide.
Now, for all of you companies who are here to learn about the Green Build Trade Mission,
we are going to be holding the Green Build Trade Mission in conjunction
with the Green Building Conference and Trade Show in Sao Paulo.
The group will go from Sao Paulo to Rio.
And in Rio we will be having a dedicated conference for US companies taking part
in the trade mission and also inviting Brazilian counterpart companies targeted to partner
with US companies for a conference-- a full day conference in Rio.
The dates are August 28 through September 2nd and the companies that we encourage
to attend includes service providers, any sort of building materials, energy efficiency,
companies that specialize in retrofitting existing buildings to be more green,
and companies that are involved in lighting systems.
This is a shortlist but we do have opportunities for companies across the Green Build sector
so please if you don't see your product on there, don't be discouraged.
Next slide.
A quick overview of the agenda.
On Sunday, August 28th, the companies will arrive in Sao Paulo.
We will do a logistics and welcome reception to go over the program for the week.
Monday, August 29th, the companies will attend the Green Building conference and trade show.
So the Green Build conference has a number of interesting sessions.
They'll all be translated.
So they're available in English.
We'll also have translators available for companies to explore the floor, so you can go
and speak to the companies that are exhibiting on the floor
and each company will have a dedicated translator to do so.
The trade mission is of course coordinated with the Department of Commerce.
So Tuesday, August 30th all of the companies will take part in the Gold Key Service
where Miguel and his team will set up four meetings for all the companies
with Brazilian counterparts to help make sure that you actually gain sales within Brazil.
At the end of that day, we'll be hosting reception at the American Chamber of Commerce
for Brazil where we'll invite Brazilian clean tech companies to participate in the reception
for networking and business opportunities.
On Wednesday, August 31st, we'll be doing a technical site visit in the morning to--
there're three different dedicated sites and if you go
into our website you will find the detailed agenda
that will show you the different technical options.
And that afternoon will be flying to Rio de Janeiro.
On Thursday, September 1st in Rio, we'll be putting on a Rio Green Build conference
which I think will be really interesting for all of the companies
that will be attending the mission.
>> And we will be featuring sections on Brazilian Green Building Market
and how to navigate the procurement process.
Hosting the first green Olympics in history, and incentives for building green in Rio.
And then we'll also be touring the very first United States Green Building Certified Building
in Rio de Janeiro.
The speakers for the conference will include the Secretary of Development from the City
of Rio de Janeiro and other speakers from his office,
representatives from the Municipal Olympic Authority, and also the Secretary
of Environment for the State of Rio.
So there'll be a lot of opportunities to meet with government officials that will be in charge
of the procurement process for the World Cup, the Olympics,
and also for the huge infrastructure project that will be taking place in Rio.
And also we'll have some speakers from the private sector including Camargo Correa,
which is one of the largest building companies in Brazil; Odebrecht, AECOM,
among others from the private sector, so plenty of opportunities to meet the right people
to help your company succeed in Brazil.
On Friday, September 2nd, the trade mission will conclude with a visit to the Port of Rio
where we'll discuss with the port officials the government procurement options on the port
and how they will be expanding the port in the coming years and how they will using the port
to facilitate the trade for the Green Building.
Next slide, please.
So how can you get involved in the trade mission?
First if you go into our website which is brazilcouncil.org/exportgreen,
you can fill out the survey and you can also email my associate,
Luciana Rocha-Goldman and her email is on the slide.
And in the email just indicate that you're interested in partaking in the Trade Mission
and details about the company that you would like to bring
and what sort of products or service you have.
Also to partake in the other portions of the Export Green project, you can visit the website
to sign up for a newsletter and event invitations,
and to find resources and get more information.
We would also love to showcase any successful companies who do business in Brazil.
So please contact me to become a Faces of Trade Export Success Story.
We would also ask that you tell your friends or other companies about this project
if you think they would be interested in participating.
And finally, contact us and tell us about organizations in your area
that you think we should work with and we should also be including in the process.
Next slide, please.
Here are just a few links.
You also saw them in Steven's presentation.
We also have the link on there for the Green Build Trade Mission
and the agenda we'll be growing up today.
I should also mention the pricing on the Trade Mission which is for company representatives.
We do have sponsor-- or scholarships available for the companies that qualify.
We have 15 available scholarships and those will be for a thousand dollars each.
So before the scholarship, the registration fee
for one participant per company would be 4500 dollars
and if you have once registered a second participant,
the second participant would pay 2,750.
This fee covers all of your entrances to the conferences both in Rio and in Sao Paulo,
the technical visit, translators, and transportation.
We do have an option for hotels as well if you want to pay for the--
if you would like us to arrange your hotels that would be 1,400 dollars extra for the hotels
and we'll take care of all those arrangements.
So next slide.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me
and we look forward to hearing from you.
Thank you.
>> Okay. Thank you, Kathleen.
That concludes our last presentation and now we are entering
into the question and answer session.
I do see one question that came up during Miguel's presentation.
The question is how does ITA interact with us, presumably companies?
And EXIM, are they a consultant or facilitator?
>> Okay, well whenever we hear of a potential company meeting, EXIM Bank or financing,
we refer them to a list of banks that are clients of EXIM Bank.
So we do more the outreach, the promotion.
Just make sure that the message gets out there, that the--
that EXIM Bank has these programs available and it could be-- so if your Brazilian buyer needed,
you know, some financing, then we would refer them
to the partner banks that EXIM has in Brazil.
And-- Or you would-- but if it's more something that you need working capital
for yourself it's-- then that-- then we would refer you to the EXIM Bank.
So, we're more the-- the promoters, we do outreach and we--
and then the Brazilian or the EXIM Bank partner banks would then take it
from there, do the evaluation.
And again, it-- the deadline to do a review is 100 days
and I understand that they are meeting that.
Or if not sooner.
>> Okay, I have another question here.
This is for Kathleen.
Does the participant fee already include the Gold Key Service or is that additional?
>> Yes, we are happy to announce that the Gold Key Service is included in the fee.
The only part that wouldn't be included in the fee is the hotels.
>> And does the participant fee include the cost of the flight between Sao Paulo and Rio?
>> It doesn't, but we can arrange those for interested companies as well.
We will just charge them for the actual cost of the flight.
>> Okay. And I have another question here.
Actually, this is probably up for grabs for anyone--
any of the speakers who would like to take it.
I would actually recommend Reeve, might wanna take a crack at this one.
The question is how would you characterize the "window of opportunity" for participation
in the infrastructure build out for the World Cup and the Olympics?
>> This is Steven from the Brazil Council.
I'll-- maybe get the first crack at this one.
Let's say closing rapidly.
It's there, a lot of money and opportunities to be had.
I think the mistakes for a lot of US companies is to try and secure the bid
or concessions directly with the Brazilian government.
It's a fairly complicated and opaque process.
I'd say a lot of the deals have been snatched up on the direct stadiums et cetera.
However, there's a lot-- large number of opportunities for US companies
that form partnerships with the local companies and for companies who wish to do that, say,
you know, connect with the Gold Key Service, connect with Department of Commerce,
connect with us, we're happy to put you in touch with these companies, the Brazilian locals
who are going to get a lot of the direct concessions.
But they're gonna find as they get closer to the games that they don't have the bandwidth
and they don't have the technology and products and services that US companies have.
That's how I'd characterize the window of opportunity.
>> Anyone else?
Okay, we have another question.
Are there any free trade agreements in place between US and Brazil
and that's the question for Lorrie.
>> Great. Thank you.
Unfortunately, we don't have a free trade agreement with Brazil.
But as I had mentioned earlier, the United States and Brazil just signed an Agreement
on Trade and Economic Cooperation which covers some of the issues that you may see in an FTA.
This ATEC, which is what we're calling it, is similar to a trade investment framework
or TIFA that some folks may know and see as a stepping stone to a free trade agreement.
We are not in negotiation for an FTA but this is something that helps to discuss those issues.
>> We have another question about the estimates per person, would it be possible
for the organizers of Export Green to work with companies to help them estimate, you know,
for their own budgeting purposes, what's the total cost will be for their participation there
if they apply to the Export Green Trade Mission including things
like air fare, hotel, and so forth?
I didn't read the question exactly as it is written because I realized
that the organizers are not that far long yet in terms of estimating air fare and that sort
of thing, but if the question-- the person asking a question wouldn't mind
if you could be contacted later with that information.
You can-- You know, if you would like to ask your question again using the queue,
please press the start 1.
>> Cora, I would-- I do have quick number estimate for them.
>> Okay.
>> I would say for hotel and for all of the Trade Mission portion,
it would be 4900 for the first company participants and that is
if the company qualified for the scholarship.
And then the second participant, of course, would be less than that.
>> And the flight I think would be somewhere around the range
of 200 dollars from-- from Sao Paulo to Rio.
>> Okay. And so you only thing that's unclear at this point is--
and it depends on each company how much it cost to get to and from Brazil.
>> That's right.
>> Okay. So I hope that's enough of a ball park estimate for now.
And again, I encourage you to contact the Brazil-US Business Council, contact Luciana
or other staff people to talk about it in more detail.
Are there any questions on the line?
Lexie?
>> Not at this time.
>> Okay. We have another question.
Trade Mission scholarships, what are the selection criteria
for a company to qualify for the scholarship?
>> For companies to qualify for the scholarship we're basically-- it's such a great question.
We are basically collecting applications from companies and we're looking for companies
that have the best market potential for Brazil in their product.
So, if we believe that you're company will be successful in the Brazilian market,
we would encourage you to go on the Trade Mission
and you could qualify for the scholarship.
So it's really a process of looking at each individual company
and their strategy for entering Brazil.
>> Okay. We do have another question from Charlotte Starfire.
And I-- she is with the sustainable business coalition,
companies that have been awarded sustainable business awards and would
like to know how they might partner with the US-Brazil Business Council.
Who should I follow up with?
She says.
>> Hi, Charlotte Starfire.
I know you from TradeRoots.
You can follow up with me directly.
You can email Kathleen McInerny, kmcinerney@uschamber.com.
>> Okay. At this time, I don't have anymore question in the typed questions.
So once again, I'd like to see whether the operator has anybody on the queue?
>> And we still have no questions at this time.
>> Okay. Well, I would like to thank all of the speakers who joined us today.
It was a wonderful selection and a great overview of--
that will certainly help companies decide whether they should apply
for the Trade Mission or not.
We do expect-- Kathleen, correct me if I'm wrong about 15 to 20 companies?
>> That's right.
We wanna keep it down to 15 to 20 so we can make sure we give all the private help
that we can give to each company.
>> And the deadline is closing in fast.
You should get in your application as soon as possible
but definitely no later than June 13th-- 15th?
Kathleen I'm sorry.
I keep asking questions.
>> No, no that's fine.
The deadline for application is June 13th.
>> June 13th.
Okay. There you have it.
Again, thank you very much for joining us and you have been a wonderful audience
and the PowerPoint presentations will be available on the Export Green website probably
by end of today and you will be receiving information on how to run a net replay
of the webinar at which will be available for 30 days.
Again, thank you very much.
Bye-bye.
>> That concludes today's call.
You may disconnect at this time.
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