Ceará, a state in northeastern Brazil, is poised to become a major player in the digital economy with the development of a new data center and a high-speed fiber optic network. Casa dos Ventos, a leading renewable energy company, is spearheading the project, which aims to connect Fortaleza’s technological hub with the Pecém Industrial and Port Complex (CIPP).

Underground Infrastructure: Connecting Fortaleza and Pecém

The linchpin of this ambitious project is an underground terrestrial infrastructure designed to bridge the gap between Praia do Futuro, where Fortaleza’s technological hub is concentrated, and the CIPP. This connection is crucial as, while Fortaleza is a landing point for submarine cables, Pecém currently lacks this infrastructure.

João Caldas, Director of Innovation at casa dos Ventos, explained the necessity for this infrastructure during the Ceará Tech Hub event in Fortaleza: The project is part of the development of at least three high capacity routes between Praia do Futuro and CIPP.

These “new fiber routes,” as Caldas calls them, will consist of at least three terrestrial cables running between Fortaleza and the new data center.

Data Center Details: Size and Scope

The Casa dos Ventos data center in Pecém is planned in phases. The initial phase will have an installed capacity of 300 megawatts (MW). The company intends to triple the equipment’s size in the second phase, approaching 1 gigawatt (GW).

Community Benefits and Connectivity

Beyond serving the needs of businesses in the Porto do Pecém region, the project aims to extend high-speed internet access to public schools. Caldas emphasized the broader impact, stating:

Routes cannot be disclosed, but there is a forecast to provide connectivity capacity for the Porto do Pecém region as a benefit of the project not only for companies in Porto do pecém, but also, eventually, high -speed internet for public schools.

João Caldas, Director of Innovation of Casa dos Ventos

Location and Regulatory Hurdles

The data center will be located within the Export Processing Zone (ZPE) in Pecém. Though, its establishment hinges on federal government approval, as the ZPE is primarily intended for the export of goods, not services like data processing. The ZPE is also known as Sparkle.

Timeline and Potential Tenants

Casa dos Ventos anticipates the new data center will be operational by 2027. This facility is expected to attract major technology companies, including Bytedance, the parent company of tiktok.

According to Caldas, the project is still “under development,” and Casa dos Ventos “has not yet entirely made the project completely viable.” He added, The plan is to start the work this year to have the conclusion in 2027, but still has some stages to be overcome.

Challenges and Approvals

The project faces several hurdles, including securing approval from the National Electric System Operator (ONS) for the remaining 600 MW connection to the national grid. The ONS had previously blocked the project. The company’s green hydrogen (H₂V) production plant also awaits approval.

Currently, only the first phase of the data center and its connection to the 230 kilovolts (kV) Pecém 2 substation have been approved. The construction of fiber cables between Fortaleza and CIPP by 2027 is also crucial for the project’s success.

Economic Impact and Job creation

Caldas believes that the availability of power and connectivity will transform the region. Having the availability of power and connectivity, as we imagine it, has everything to become a pole of new projects. It has area, has space, has capacity, has no reason having othre projects, he stated.

While Casa dos Ventos remains tight-lipped about specific companies negotiating to establish operations in the data center, Caldas assured that “technology companies” will be settling there. The data center is projected to generate over 16,000 direct and indirect jobs. combined with the hydrogen plant, the company expects to create approximately 22,000 jobs in the Pecém region.

Negotiations with Huawei and Chinese Investment

A delegation of Brazilian entrepreneurs and leaders plans to visit China in June to attract Asian companies to invest in technology hubs in Brazil. Among the potential deals is the installation of Huawei in the Casa dos Ventos data center.

A source familiar with the negotiations revealed that the delegation will also visit other companies that could potentially establish operations in Ceará’s data centers.

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