According to Roberto Braun, spokesperson for ESG Toyota Brazil, the Japanese automaker has been able to take advantage of its extensive ethanol production to popularize hybrid vehicles in a market where Chinese car imports are losing ground due to tariffs.
2024 was a key year for the growth of electromobility in Brazil. According to the Brazilian Electric Vehicle Association, the South American giant closed the year with a record 177,358 light units of this type registered. The volume represents a 98% growth compared to 93,927 in 2023. It is worth noting that in December alone, sales amounted to 21,634 units.
The expansion was led by the country's main metropolises such as São Paulo (32% of total sales), Brasilia (9%) and Rio de Janeiro (7.2%). As for the most requested models, plug-in electric vehicles stand out, due to the expansion of the charging infrastructure network, which allows the daily use of these units.
Meanwhile, due to the elimination of the 35% tariff on electric vehicle imports, Chinese brands such as BYD, Great Wall and Haval have led the market in recent years. However, this prominence began to falter from 2024, as Lula da Silva's return to power has come with a gradual return to the old rules. Currently, the tax on automotive imports is 10% and will return to 35% in 2026.
The Brazilian president's measures were followed by images of Chinese electric cars stranded in Brazilian ports due to increasing marketing difficulties. Of course, the beneficiaries have been the automotive companies with assembly plants in Brazil. In this group, Volkswagen, Renault and the Japanese company Toyota stand out.
Toyota announced in March 2024 that it would invest US$2.2 billion in the Brazilian market by 2030. The goal? To expand its capacity at the new Sorocaba 2 plant, located in São Paulo and capable of producing more than 100,000 vehicles a year to supply a market of 40 countries. The goal is for the factory to generate 500 jobs by 2026 and 1,500 by 2030. This is a strategy that is part of Toyota's commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
“These investments are designed to increase production of vehicles and engines in Brazil. They will accompany the growing demand for electrified vehicles in the country and the region, because from Brazil we export to 22 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean,” explained Roberto Braun, Communications Director, President of the Toyota Foundation and spokesperson for ESG Toyota Brazil to AméricaEconomía .
HOW DID TOYOTA EXPAND ELECTROMOBILITY IN BRAZIL?
Braun also points out that Toyota Brazil has a long history of being a pioneer in the production of hybrid and electric vehicles in South America. This was demonstrated by the commercialization of models such as the Prius (2012) and the production of hybrid versions of the Corolla (2019) and the Corolla Cross (2021). The spokesperson assures that 2025 will see the launch of a third flex hybrid model in Brazil, a compact vehicle that “will help democratize electrification” in the largest South American economy.
“We already have plans to introduce a fourth flex hybrid vehicle to the market , which is being developed exclusively for Brazil. With that, these investments will accelerate our sales in the country and for the region of electrified vehicles,” Braun added.
To chart its expansion path, Toyota is using the Multipathway strategy , which divides new models into four classes: on the one hand, there are hybrid vehicles, which combine internal combustion engines with electric motors. On the other, there are plug-in hybrids, which allow for longer distances in electric mode, thereby reducing carbon emissions.
The third group consists of battery electric vehicles, which run exclusively on electric power, eliminating direct emissions. The last group includes hydrogen fuel cell vehicles: they use hydrogen to generate electricity on board, emitting only water as a byproduct.
According to Braun, this strategy seeks to adapt to the context of each country in order to expand electromobility under the most appropriate conditions. “In Brazil, for example, we are the main producer of sugar cane globally and the second largest producer of ethanol. With this context and also considering that ethanol is distributed in 42,000 service stations nationwide, we understand that ethanol hybrid vehicles are one of the best alternatives for decarbonization in Brazil,” he says.
PERU'S OPPORTUNITY
While visiting Peru to participate in the International Energy Efficiency Conference 2025, Braun highlights that the Andean country has abundant reserves of natural gas, a low-carbon fuel. This allows emissions to be reduced by about 10%, making it a viable alternative to diesel. While Braun acknowledges that the lack of electric charging infrastructure in Peru is alarming, 50% of the energy matrix is renewable.
“If we take these factors into account, we conclude that in Peru, the best options for decarbonisation are a mix of two alternatives: natural gas, because it has a very developed supply infrastructure, and the second is to use hybrid vehicles, because they do not require a recharging infrastructure,” says Braun.
Why is this possible? Hybrid models charge themselves through their own motion. When braking, all the energy from the movement is stored in the battery for later use with the electric motors. Because of this, hybrid vehicles can reduce consumption and carbon emissions by more than 30%. In contrast, plug-in hybrid models do not offer this advantage, because they need constant charging to be able to drive effectively.
The current outlook looks promising. In December 2023, the Automotive Association of Peru (AAP) revealed that almost 90% of electric vehicles sold in the country were hybrids. The remaining share is split between plug-in hybrids and electric models, which Braun interprets as proof that Peruvians are looking for alternatives in the face of the shortage of charging stations.
Given the differences in public policies and energy matrices, Braun does not dare to predict how electromobility will advance in Peru by 2030. However, one thing is certain. “What Brazil can teach Peru is that we should not have a single solution for decarbonizing the world. Each country can have one or more solutions that are aligned with its own context,” he says.
