Alessandra Plaga
Regulatory Coordinator
Petrobras S.A
Alessandra Ribeiro Couto Plaga is a Brazilian professional from Rio de Janeiro, 50 years old, married and mother of two. She holds a Master’s degree in Economics from IBMEC-RJ, a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from PUC-RJ, and an MBA in Corporate and Market Finance from IBMEC-RJ. Her academic background also includes postgraduate studies in Economic Engineering (UERJ), ESG (FGV-RJ), and executive programs in Sustainability Business at INSEAD (USA) and Strategic Finance at IMD (Switzerland).
With more than 25 years of professional experience—twenty of them at Petrobras, Brazil’s leading oil and gas company—Alessandra has built a diversified career in finance, treasury, planning, controlling, and investment valuation. Over the last 15 years, she has held key leadership roles, including:
Portfolio Coordinator for restructuring businesses in Refining, Natural Gas, and Petrochemicals, supporting the sale of one of Brazil’s largest refineries.
Member of the Implementation Team for the Búzios Oil Field, contributing to its development.
Planning and Performance Manager in the Biofuels segment for over a decade.
She also served as an Executive Representative, sitting on the Board of Directors of BSBios—a major Brazilian biodiesel producer with revenues exceeding $588 million—and as a member of Petrobras’ Downstream Committee. Alessandra frequently participates in strategic work groups focused on risk analysis, mergers and acquisitions, investment evaluation, and performance studies. She is often invited to attend meetings of Investment Committees, Boards of Directors, and Audit Boards, where she provides technical opinions and advisory notes.
Currently, Alessandra is Regulatory Affairs Coordinator in Petrobras’ Energy Transition Directorate, with a focus on renewable energy. She is fluent in four languages and is currently learning German, her grandparents’ native language. Beyond her technical expertise, she continuously invests in leadership, people management, and compliance training.
Participates in
TECHNICAL PROGRAMME | Energy Technologies
The law creates a cap-and-trade system, where the government sets emission limits for activities, sources, and facilities, distributes Emission Allowances (Cotas Brasileiras de Emissões – CBEs), and allows trading of these allowances among regulated operators. The SBCE primarily applies to the industrial and energy sectors.
CBEs will be allocated to regulated operators either free of charge or through paid mechanisms within the established emission Cap. If an operator exceeds its allowance, it must purchase additional CBEs from other companies or acquire carbon credits from the voluntary market, provided they are recognized as eligible by the Brazilian government. The allocation of CBEs among regulated sectors will be determined by the National Allocation Plan (NDCs), which aligns with Brazil’s climate commitments under the National Climate Plan (Plano Clima).
The approval of Law No. 15.042/2024 represents a significant step toward fulfilling Brazil’s commitments under the Paris Agreement while maintaining the country’s global market competitiveness. This is particularly relevant given the implementation of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) by the European Union in 2023.
The law broadly defines key aspects of the SBCE, including:
• Principles and governance structure;
- Legal and tax status of emission assets;
- Technology systems supporting the market;
- Obligations for regulated entities (measurement, reporting, verification, and compliance);
- Enforcement measures and penalties;
- Guidelines for integrating the SBCE with voluntary carbon markets.
The National Allocation Plan will determine emission limits and the allocation of allowances across sectors and regulated entities. It will be developed by the SBCE’s managing authority (to be appointed by the federal government) with the support of the Permanent Technical Group, a consultative body including representatives from the government, industry, academia, and civil society. The plan must be approved by the Interministerial Committee on Climate Change (CIM).
The SBCE’s guiding principles include compatibility with Brazil’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), transparency, predictability, economic competitiveness, and cost-effective emissions reduction. Allocation methodologies will consider technological advancements, historical efficiency gains, and marginal abatement costs.
The National Allocation Plan will follow a gradual approach across commitment periods, ensuring regulatory predictability. It must be approved at least 12 months before its implementation, with estimated emission limits projected for two subsequent periods.
