Na bonança do Redata, lobby das renováveis tenta tirar o gás do jogo

The proposed government incentives for data centers have become the subject of intense debate among lobbying groups in Brasilia after the Redata project was approved by Congress. The next round of the battle centers around the regulation of tax benefits for the incentives. Originally, the government's plan provided incentives only for data centers that contracted 100% of their energy from clean and renewable sources.

However, the proposal from renewable groups like Casa dos Ventos, led by entrepreneur Mario Araripe, was altered by the Senate to include projects powered by "low-emission" sources, potentially paving the way for data centers powered by gas-fired power plants. The gas market, however, may not have time to celebrate its success. Renewables are expected to convince the government to restrict the allocation of gas in the decree detailing the law's regulation.

It is anticipated that the decree regulating the Redata law in detail will be released alongside the signing, or perhaps by the end of the week. The Brazilian Association of Thermal Power Generators, Xisto Vieira, believes that restricting gas would be detrimental not only to the sector but also to data centers themselves, which require reliable 24/7 energy without the risk of intermittency as seen in wind and solar generation.

According to Luiz Maurer, a consultant who previously worked as an energy expert for the World Bank, data centers can only receive energy from various sources within the interconnected system, including thermal power plants and hydropower, which are already strained. While Maurer is not against data centers, he warns that when people claim that it will be 100% renewable, they already know that it won't be.

It will be a condition that is only understandable by English speakers. The risk is that by restricting gas for data centers, the government may end up having to contract more thermal power plants, leading to increased costs in capacity auctions passed on to energy tariffs. In the United States, data center costs have fueled growing public resistance to new projects and debates between politicians and the technology industry.

In Texas, Amazon signed an agreement to power a new data center entirely with gas-fired thermal energy, claiming it would avoid impacts on residents' electricity bills. In the U.S., gas is the primary source of electricity for data centers, accounting for 40% of demand, followed by renewables (primarily wind and solar), nuclear energy (20%), and coal (15%), according to data from the International Energy Agency.