Brazil’s data center industry is on track for significant expansion in 2025 and beyond, propelled by multibillion-dollar investments from global and local players. The sector benefits from Brazil’s strategic location, competitive renewable energy matrix, and growing digital economy. Analysts forecast that Brazil will contribute nearly two-thirds of Latin America’s expected 340 MW increase in data center capacity this year, marking it as the region’s primary growth engine.
One of the most ambitious undertakings is underway in Ceará, where Omnia, a digital infrastructure arm of Pátria Investimentos, is spearheading the creation of the Pecém Data Center. This sustainable mega-facility, designed to serve as Brazil’s first data center focused primarily on data export, is projected to start operations by the second half of 2027. Pecém will have an initial IT capacity of 200 MW, ranking it among Latin America’s largest. The project features a substantial US$2 billion infrastructure investment, complemented by an estimated US$7 billion in client-held high-density servers, primarily for AI training and cloud services. Omnia’s partner, Casa dos Ventos, is investing approximately R$3.5 billion to develop dedicated wind and solar farms supplying 100% renewable energy to the center, highlighting Brazil’s clean energy advantage.
The Ceará facility’s location within the Zona de Processamento de Exportação (ZPE) at the Port of Pecém places it at a strategic nexus of international subsea fiber optic cables linking Brazil to North America, Europe, Africa, and other Latin American markets. This connectivity ensures low latency and global reach, critical for AI workloads and digital services.
Meanwhile, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro continue to attract significant data center expansion. ODATA has initiated construction of its fifth Brazilian facility in the São Paulo metro region, complementing its growing footprint across Latin America, including Colombia, Chile, and Mexico. ODATA’s projects incorporate advanced cooling technologies such as liquid and hybrid systems to optimize energy efficiency while accommodating high-density AI compute loads.
Global digital infrastructure giant Equinix is advancing its expansion plans with multiple data centers across Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula. In Brazil, Equinix’s third Rio de Janeiro data center is set to open in early 2025 with an investment around US$94 million. The company also plans a new facility in Santana de Parnaíba, São Paulo, aiming for more than a thousand racks and completing initial phases by 2026. Equinix’s investments are part of a broader focus on enhancing cloud and financial services connectivity across the continent.
The Brazilian company Tecto Data Centers, controlled by BTG Pactual, inaugurated its sixth data center in Fortaleza, Ceará, called “Mega Lobster,” with 4 MW (expandable to 20 MW) capacity. Tecto is deploying a further US$1 billion to develop new sites across Belém, Recife, Brasília, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo, including a major 200 MW hyper-scale project in Santana de Parnaíba.
Beyond individual facilities, Brazil is witnessing the emergence of large integrated data center ecosystems or “cities” designed to host multiple operators and tenants. In Eldorado do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, Scala Data Centers is building what is set to become Latin America’s largest digital infrastructure complex, with expected total investments exceeding R$600 billion over its lifecycle and an initial IT capacity around 54 MW, with the potential to scale to multiple gigawatts. Backed by the state government, this initiative aims to position southern Brazil as a new tech powerhouse akin to Silicon Valley.
The rapid acceleration in data center capacity meets emerging challenges, notably ensuring the stability and sufficiency of Brazil’s electrical infrastructure. Energy operators are tasked with upgrading grids and distribution to handle sharply increased demand in major urban hubs. The sector’s sustainability drive is addressing water usage concerns through closed-loop cooling and energy recycling innovations.
Data centers are now among the country’s most energy-intensive facilities, with individual centers requiring 100 to 200 MW, far exceeding past industry scales. However, Brazil’s renewable generation—primarily hydropower supplemented with growing wind and solar installations—positions it uniquely to meet this demand sustainably. The collaboration between data center operators and clean energy providers is a critical pillar for balancing growth with climate goals.
As the AI revolution fuels an insatiable appetite for high-performance computing, Brazil’s favorable regulatory environment—including incentives for export-oriented digital infrastructures in ZPEs—and investment climate ensure it is not only a regional leader but also a global contender in green data center development.
With hundreds of megawatts of new capacity coming online, Brazil is set to become a central node in the evolving digital economy, merging cutting-edge technology with renewable energy leadership.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
