Lula
President of Brazil since 2023, and previously from 2003 to 2011.
Lula signed Lei 15.504 on 15 September without vetoing its water cap, creating Brazil's Redata tax regime for data-centre and AI construction; on 6 and 7 October his government ran its first auction of grid connection capacity.
Last refreshed: 18 October 2026 · Appears in 2 active topics
Why is Brazil's president, not WHO, now setting the deadline on pandemic treaty talks?
Timeline for Lula
Mentioned in: Brazil auctions its grid to data centres
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashSigned Lei 15.504 creating Redata
Data Centres: Boom and Backlash: Lula signs Redata law with water capMentioned in: Brazil links Scala Data Centers' AI City
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashMentioned in: Brazil ties tax break to water cap
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashCo-signed an open letter naming 17 July a deadline, not a milestone
Pandemics and Biosecurity: PABS talks reopen under a deadlineBackground
Lula, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, returned to Brazil's presidency in January 2023 for a third term, after earlier periods in office from 2003 to 2011. He leads the Workers' Party (PT), which he co-founded after work as a metalworker and trade-union leader. In September 2026 he signed the Redata law, and in October his government ran Brazil's first auction for grid connection capacity, where data centres won every megawatt offered.
His politics have centred on poverty reduction, Labour and Brazil's role in international negotiations, so presidential decisions on industrial policy carry beyond one sector. Redata ties tax relief for data-centre and AI construction to a water-use condition verified every year.
Lula also uses Brazil's diplomatic weight in global health talks. On 15 June 2026 Lula co-signed, with the head of the WHO, a public letter to G7, G20 and BRICS leaders that named a deadline for the stalled pathogen-sharing annex to the Pandemic Agreement, ahead of the negotiating session that opened in Geneva on 6 July.
Lula signs Redata law
The Senate sent Lula the Redata bill on 1 September after writing in a condition: data centres claiming the tax break must hold water use to 0.05 litres per kilowatt-hour, checked every year, a level below what evaporative cooling normally reaches.
On 15 September Lula signed the bill as Lei 15.504 with no veto, so the cap became part of the enacted regime rather than going back for further parliamentary work. The decision puts the presidency behind a tax incentive tied to a measurable environmental test that operators must pass each year. Three weeks later his government's grid operator ran the first competitive round for connection capacity, in which three data centres took all 228 MW offered at four São Paulo points.
Lula signs Redata law
Has President Lula signed Brazil's data-centre tax bill?
What is Redata, the Brazilian data-centre tax bill awaiting Lula's signature?
Reference
What is the PABS annex Lula is pushing WHO members to agree?
Recently resolved
Why did Lula co-sign a letter about the WHO Pandemic Agreement?
Who is the President of Brazil?
Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Updated 18 October 2026. Editorial standards.