Sent to Congress about a month ago, the provisional measure that creates the Special Tax Regime for Data Centers ( ReData ) has already accumulated 155 amendments presented by parliamentarians, while awaiting the installation of a committee to analyze the text, according to a survey by BNamericas.
ReData seeks to encourage the installation and expansion of data centers in Brazil, offering tax benefits such as the suspension of taxes on the acquisition and import of processing and computing equipment.
Interested companies must fulfill certain obligations, such as investing in research and development, allocating part of their capacity to the domestic market, and meeting sustainability criteria.
MPs have immediate legal force but must be reviewed by the chamber of deputies and the senate to become law. The review period is 60 days, automatically extendable for the same period if the vote is not completed.
After the first 30 days from September 17, the ReData MP is still awaiting the installation of the committee.
Meanwhile, lawmakers continue to propose changes to the text submitted by the government, many following discussions with the private sector and civil society.
Of the total amendments presented up to September 16, three lawmakers stand out with 10 or more proposals: senator Luis Carlos Heinze, from Rio Grande do Sul (17); federal deputy Duda Salabert, from Minas Gerais (14); and federal deputy Vitor Lippi, from São Paulo (13).
Other lawmakers with a significant number of amendments include deputy André Figueiredo, from Ceará (10); senator Cid Gomes, also from Ceará (9); and deputy Juscelino Filho, from Maranhão (8).
Figueiredo and Juscelino, both former communications ministers, are members of the committee that will evaluate ReData, although its final composition may still change. Senator Gomes, whose state has received significant investment in data centers, also serves on the committee.
The committee will be made up of 13 full senators and 13 alternates, plus an equal number of deputies. The rapporteur and chair have not yet been chosen.
According to market sources, the sector’s main concerns during the processing of the MP and its conversion into law include the risk of excessive detail in the conditions for accessing benefits and the increase in counterparts for investments in regions with limited energy or telecommunications infrastructure.
There is also special attention on renewable energy self-production contracts and equipment that may or may not receive benefits.
What do the amendments say?
BNamericas analyzed part of the amendments presented.
Congresswoman Duda Salabert proposed including an article requiring that “projects with a load greater than 100 MW carry out prior, free and informed consultation with the local community before qualifying for ReData.”
This criticism had been made by civil society organizations shortly after the government presented the MP.
The deputy also suggests vetoing data centers benefiting from areas declared, in the last three years, to be in a “critical situation of quantitative or qualitative scarcity of water resources” by the National Water Agency (ANA) or by state agencies.
Another proposal from the parliamentarian requires companies to present reverse logistics plans and environmentally appropriate disposal of electronic equipment and waste.
Salabert also proposes increasing the requirement to apply the value of products acquired with ReData benefits to local research, development and innovation projects to 20%.
Currently, this counterpart is an alternative to the obligation to allocate 30% of processing and storage capacity to the domestic market.
Energy
Senator Heinze focused his 17 amendments primarily on energy-related changes.
One of them proposes that the deadline for discounts on energy transmission tariffs for data centers benefiting from ReData begins to count from the generation grant.
Heinze also wants the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel) and the National Electric System Operator (ONS ) to regulate, within 180 days, mechanisms that prioritize the use of renewable generation for data centers, seeking to shield the sector from possible mandatory generation cuts ( curtailment ).
According to the senator, “there is no legal or regulatory provision that allows the use of solar and wind energy cut by the ONS, even when there are loads physically connected to the generating plants and that could be served without impacting the transmission system” and it would be necessary to correct this.
Another amendment proposes that self-production contracts and PPAs signed by benefiting data centers come exclusively from new generation plants, following the so-called “additionality principle”, also present in the Export Processing Zones (ZPEs) MP and criticized by part of the data center sector.
The senator also suggests including energy storage systems, such as BESS, among the equipment that can benefit from ReData tax incentives.
Representative Vitor Lippi presented similar proposals, including the principle of additionality and the inclusion of BESS systems.
He also advocates new measures to ensure full compensation to generators in cases of curtailment.
Among other amendments, Congressman André Figueiredo suggests that the suspension of the import tax apply only to equipment not manufactured in the Manaus Free Trade Zone.
Figueiredo also proposes to include locally produced electronic equipment (OEMs) in ReData and extend the benefits to products resulting from technological innovation developed in the country.
“It is not coherent for the State to encourage the development and production of national technologies, but at the same time, not require a minimum percentage of acquisition of products with technology developed and manufactured in Brazil in projects covered by ReData,” argued Figueiredo.
Figueiredo also defends the National Fund for Scientific and Technological Development as a recipient of resources related to ReData’s counterparts.
Senator Eduardo Gomes proposes extending the validity of ReData tax benefits until December 31, 2030, and adds equipment for IoT systems and satellites to this deadline.
(The original version of this content was written in Portuguese)