O Papel do Tribunal de Contas da União para a Gestão de Riscos Socioambientais das Concessões Federais de Ferrovias e Rodovias

The report examines how the TCU has evolved into a primary instance for the preventive control of socio-environmental risks in federal transport infrastructure concessions. While the TCU provides critical oversight to mitigate risks and ensure legal security, its intervention often occurs too late in the project lifecycle. This tardiness is attributed to a lack of motivated and transparent approval of Technical, Economic, and Environmental Viability Studies (EVTEA) by the Executive branch at the start of the viability phase. The document analyzes four case studies—BR-163/230/MT/PA, the North-South Railway (FNSTC), the Southern Integration Highway (RIS), and Ferrogrão—to illustrate the tensions between the TCU's oversight and the Executive's discretionary power, as well as the systemic failures in viability study quality, often exacerbated by the use of Manifestation of Interest (PMI) procedures.

• The TCU has increasingly functioned as a risk management and preventive control body for bidding processes, often becoming the primary instance for approving Technical, Economic, and Environmental Viability Studies (EVTEA) because the Executive branch fails to provide motivated and transparent approvals at the start of the viability phase.
• The TCU's intervention occurs too late in the project lifecycle, which can lead to the need to rewrite viability studies, bidding notices, and concession contracts, resulting in wasted public resources, as seen in the Southern Integration Highway (RIS) case.
• In the concession of highway BR-163/230/MT/PA, the TCU intervened to ensure clear contractual rules regarding the responsibility for pending environmental conditions, estimated at over R$ 350 million, to prevent litigation and ensure socio-environmental viability in the Amazon biome.
• The TCU maintains that the distribution of environmental liabilities is a discretionary decision of the Executive branch, as demonstrated in the sub-concession of the North-South Railway (FNSTC), where it recommended but did not mandate that the sub-concessionaire assume full responsibility.
• The use of Manifestation of Interest (PMI) procedures for developing viability studies is linked to low-quality results, as potential concessionaires may omit strategic information to gain a future advantage, and the uncertainty of remuneration discourages non-concessionaire experts.
• The Ferrogrão project illustrates severe viability failures, including a lack of in-person socio-environmental assessments and the use of Google Earth for technical data, leading to legal challenges from the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) regarding the lack of consultation with indigenous peoples.
• To improve infrastructure governance, the report recommends introducing pre-viability analysis, ensuring EVTEAs are evaluated transparently before Environmental Impact Studies (EIAs), and enhancing the PMI contracting process.

APA

Cozendey, G., & Chiavari, J. (2021). O Papel do Tribunal de Contas da União para a Gestão de Riscos Socioambientais das Concessões Federais de Ferrovias e Rodovias. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/REL_TCU_PT.pdf

Chicago

Cozendey, Gabriel, and Joana Chiavari. O Papel do Tribunal de Contas da União para a Gestão de Riscos Socioambientais das Concessões Federais de Ferrovias e Rodovias. Climate Policy Initiative, 2021. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/REL_TCU_PT.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Cozendey |first1=Gabriel |last2=Chiavari |first2=Joana |title=O Papel do Tribunal de Contas da União para a Gestão de Riscos Socioambientais das Concessões Federais de Ferrovias e Rodovias |publisher=Climate Policy Initiative |date=November 2021 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/REL_TCU_PT.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cozendey2021papel, author = {Cozendey, Gabriel and Chiavari, Joana}, title = {{O Papel do Tribunal de Contas da União para a Gestão de Riscos Socioambientais das Concessões Federais de Ferrovias e Rodovias}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2021}, month = nov, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/REL_TCU_PT.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }