Lula
President of Brazil since 2023, and previously from 2003 to 2011.
On 15 September, Lula gave assent to Lei 15.504, keeping the water limit attached to Brazil’s Redata tax regime for data-centre and AI projects.
Last refreshed: 24 September 2026 · Appears in 2 active topics
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Timeline for Lula
Signed Lei 15.504 creating Redata
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Brazil returned Lula to the presidency in January 2023, beginning his 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.
His political career has centred on poverty reduction, Labour politics and Brazil’s role in international negotiations. That combination makes presidential decisions on industrial policy consequential beyond a single sector: Lula’s September 2026 assent to Redata placed the presidency behind tax incentives tied to a verified water-use condition.
Brazilian diplomacy also gives Lula a platform in Global South bargaining. In July 2026, his co-signature on a Deadline letter placed Brazil alongside the World Health Organization in talks over pathogen access and benefit sharing.
Lula signs Redata law
On 15 September, Lula signed Lei 15.504 without removing its annual water-use condition. The law establishes Redata, a tax regime for data-centre and AI construction, while retaining a limit of 0.05 litres per kilowatt-hour.
The Senate had sent the measure to Lula on 1 September after adding the CAP as a condition of the tax break. His decision made the condition part of the enacted regime rather than returning it for further parliamentary work. For the presidency, Redata links industrial policy to a measurable environmental requirement that operators must meet each year.
