The provisional measure that established the Redata (Special Tax Regime for Data Center Services) expired in February, jeopardizing an industry that could bring billions of dollars in investment to the country.
Despite this, the process “is alive,” according to Atilio Ruili, Vice President of Institutional Relations at Huawei. The Chinese manufacturer equips data centers with infrastructure ranging from computing to energy, and participates in negotiations with the sector and public authorities to make Redata a success. Ruili conservatively estimates that the measure should come into effect this year.
“The interest stems from the fact that the regime could increase foreign investment, generating jobs and income, and making Brazil a data center hub, at least for Latin America, if done well,” the Huawei executive told the reporter, highlighting the advantages of the country’s energy matrix and territorial diversity.
Coordination through data centers
The bill that would maintain Redata was urgently approved by the Chamber of Deputies at the end of February. However, the president of the Federal Senate, Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP), did not schedule the bill that would create tax incentives to encourage the installation of data centers in Brazil before the provisional measure expired.
At the time, the then Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad, stated that the government was studying legal avenues to reinstate Redata.
The bill’s rapporteur in the Chamber of Deputies, Representative Arnaldo Jardim (Cidadania-SP), told reporters that there is a “very committed” effort between the public and private sectors to ensure a “quick vote” on the bill.
According to Jardim, the president of the house, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), is “aligned with this effort to quickly vote” on the project.
“The problem is less related to Redata and more with the political circumstances between Alcolumbre and the government; there are disputes to be overcome. We are waiting for Davi Alcolumbre’s ‘ok’,” Jardim told CNN Money.
“Brazil has immense potential to become a hub for data centers. Besides ample space, the country has a significant advantage: renewable energy sources. Redata has a good concept and incentives that are just right,” he pointed out.
Mobilization of the technology sector
The action also takes place within the data center sector, which maintains a permanent, technical and institutional dialogue with the public authorities, according to Luis Tossi, vice-president of ABDC (Brazilian Association of Data Centers).
“In the Senate, there was indeed a standstill in the process. Given this, we continue with an active agenda of dialogue with party leaders and senators’ offices, focusing on demonstrating, in an objective way, the economic, technological, and strategic impacts of Redata – especially regarding attracting investments, generating qualified jobs, and strengthening Brazilian digital sovereignty,” reports Tossi.
In a joint statement, entities from the productive sector came out in defense of making the program viable. The statement is signed by ABDC, Abeeólica (Brazilian Association of Wind Energy and New Technologies), Abes (Brazilian Association of Software Companies), Brasscom (Association of Information Technology Companies and
Communication and Digital Technologies) and CNI (National Confederation of Industry).
Tito Costa, CRO of Tecto Data Centers, observes that “there is now a significant alignment between data center companies, connectivity companies, technology providers, and the public sector regarding the strategic role of this industry.”
“The digital infrastructure sector in Brazil has been evolving in an increasingly collaborative way. Brazil has important advantages — a predominantly renewable energy matrix, ample land availability, and a privileged geographical position for international connectivity — and dialogue within the sector has been progressing towards transforming this potential into concrete projects,” says Costa.
“This movement involves sharing best practices, discussing technical and regulatory standards, and, above all, building an integrated vision of infrastructure. It is this approach that allows the country to position itself as a relevant digital hub in Latin America.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilec3rs-jXk
Sustainability
Large technology companies recently abandoned plans to build multi-billion dollar data centers in the United States due to opposition from communities neighboring the projects, and are now facing pressure from shareholders regarding the environmental impact of these ventures.
Investors are increasing pressure on companies, seeking more data on water and energy use by the facilities.
In the case of Brazil, it is estimated that in a country that has rapidly expanded its renewable generation capacity, especially wind and solar, these structures can play a significant role in creating local demand for energy that is currently wasted.
“Brazil has one of the largest surpluses of renewable energy in the world. In other words, there is no competition with the population for resources. What exists is a strategic use of an advantage that the country already possesses,” says Marcos Siqueira, CRO and Head of Strategy at Ascenty.
Another point raised is that the new data centers will predominantly use closed-loop water cooling systems, with more limited consumption, according to a report by Brasscom, which had the support of ABDC and Fadurpe (Apolônio Sales Foundation for Educational Development).
“The water enters the reservoir once, and this is equivalent to the 10-day consumption of 112 families of 4 people in a large data center (30MW) that uses 100% closed-loop systems,” says the study.
Thus, the survey indicates that industrial energy consumption is 21 times greater than that of data centers in the country, while residential consumption is 16 times greater. Regarding water, it points out that industry uses more than 3,000 times more, while residences use almost 8,000 times more.
“Brazil starts from a favorable position, with a predominantly renewable energy matrix, which puts the country in a prominent position from the point of view of sustainability in the sector. […] There is also a coordinated effort to broaden the dialogue with society and different stakeholders,” says Fernanda Belchior, Director of Marketing, Communication & Sales Ops at Elea Data Centers. We shall see.
Source: www.bing.com
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