Latin America is entering a defining phase in its digital infrastructure build-out. Cloud adoption, AI workloads, sovereign data requirements and nearshoring are driving rapid growth in hyperscale and enterprise data centre demand. The market is valued at roughly USD 19.83 billion in 2025 and projected to surpass USD 33 billion by 2030, reflecting a sustained annual growth rate of more than 10 percent.

This cycle differs materially from earlier phases of development. Between 2008 and 2020, expansion was characterised by smaller facilities, surplus grid capacity and largely balance‑sheet financing. Today’s projects are larger, more power‑intensive and capital‑disciplined, with announced developments such as Argentina’s proposed 500MW AI-focused campus, reportedly valued at up to USD 25 billion [i]. Investors are underwriting power access, regulatory durability, execution capability and long‑term off take — not data centres as generic real estate.

As Terranova chief executive José Eduardo Quintella noted, the region has entered a new cycle of digital infrastructure growth driven by cloud, AI and enterprise demand [ii]. The result is a competitive, capital‑intensive market where Latin America is no longer a future opportunity but an active battleground for global capital, and where scale and execution determine who attracts funding.

Made from concentrate: Capital clusters and market leaders

Brazil remains the anchor market, accounting for more than 40 percent of regional data-centre investment. São Paulo alone hosts close to 500MW of installed capacity, but grid congestion and rising costs are pushing new developments toward secondary metropolitan areas and dedicated data-centre zones, including Rio de Janeiro, Fortaleza and Campinas.

Recent announcements underscore the scale of ambition. Multi‑hundred‑megawatt campuses and multi‑billion‑dollar investment envelopes are becoming common, often co‑located with transmission assets and paired with long‑term power strategies. Brazil is also seeing convergence between hyperscalers, infrastructure investors and renewable energy developers, increasingly structuring projects around integrated power and digital platforms rather than standalone facilities. Casa dos Ventos’ (one of Brazil’s leading renewable energy developers), executive director Lucas Araripe commented that Brazil’s renewable energy matrix, connectivity and human capital create “a concrete opportunity to export high value-added services and accelerate the energy transformation” [iii].

Mexico is consolidating its position as the second-largest market, supported by nearshoring, proximity to the US and strong cross-border connectivity. Chile forms the next tier, benefiting from regulatory stability, renewable penetration and improving fibre infrastructure. Across all three markets, speculative land banking is giving way to fully integrated developments where power, permitting and financing are secured upfront.

Capital is concentrating in jurisdictions and locations that can deliver scale with credible power and permitting solutions from day one.

Magic beans: Financing the next growth phase

Hyperscalers continue to set the pace through long-term demand visibility and strong credit quality, but the most meaningful capital innovation is occurring in the mid-market, where lenders are increasingly underwriting regional platforms rather than single assets.

Scala Data Centers’ USD 328 million Chilean financing, complemented by development-bank support from BNDES (Brazil's federal state-owned development bank), illustrates how scaled operators with disciplined execution can access longer-tenor, lower-cost capital when expansion aligns with national digital and energy priorities [iv][v].

Odata’s USD 1.02 billion green financing reinforces this trend, highlighting that sustainability and energy efficiency are now baseline requirements for experienced sponsors rather than sources of differentiation [vi]. Financing is available but selectively, and primarily to platforms that can demonstrate repeatable delivery and operational credibility.

Sibling rivalry: Competing for capital

Governments across Latin America are increasingly aware that data centres are mobile capital. Fiscal incentives, tariff structures, permitting timelines and grid-access frameworks now materially influence site selection and project bankability.

Brazil has streamlined permitting in designated data-centre zones, while Chile maintains regulatory clarity despite growing transmission constraints. Argentina has signalled ambition through very large proposed projects, linking AI infrastructure to broader development objectives, but faces a higher execution and policy‑credibility bar [vii].

Across the region, alignment between energy policy, permitting and fiscal frameworks is becoming a prerequisite for attracting hyperscale investment. As a result, jurisdictions that reduce regulatory friction and align energy and digital policy are positioned to capture disproportionate capital flows.

Keeping it clean: Energy constraints and clean supply

Power has become the binding constraint for data-centre expansion, forcing developers to integrate energy strategy at project inception rather than treat it as downstream procurement. Elea Data Centers’ Petrobras contract illustrates this integration. The 17-year, BRL 2.3 billion agreement will support AI workloads and is powered entirely by renewable energy [viii].

Elea’s Rio AI City Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) further highlights this trend. The initiative targets up to 3.2GW of certified renewable capacity, aiming to transform Rio de Janeiro into one of the world’s largest metropolitan green data centre hubs. Chairman Alessandro Lombardi described Rio AI City as “more than a data centre**;** it’s a testament to Brazil’s future as a global leader in sustainable digital infrastructure,” framing the project as a demonstration of how energy, digital infrastructure and long-term planning are now being integrated from inception [ix].

For power investors, this creates a new demand profile: long-duration, creditworthy off-take tied to digital infrastructure rather than traditional industrial load. For data-centre developers, integrated energy strategy has become a prerequisite for scale and bankability rather than a sustainability overlay.

Do we all agree: Bankable PPAs

Power Purchase Agreements (“PPAs”) are evolving rapidly. Fixed-price structures are giving way to layered models that address basis risk, merchant exposure and regulatory uncertainty, particularly as intermittent renewable generation is paired with 24/7 data-centre load profiles. This trend is reflected in the rapid expansion of the Latin America solar PPA market, which is projected to surpass USD 15 billion in annual transaction volume by 2026 as governments and corporates accelerate renewable energy procurement and long-term off-take contracts across the region [x].

For lenders, bankability increasingly depends on sponsor strength and contractual resilience. For equity investors, PPAs have become a source of competitive differentiation rather than a commodity input. As Tatiana Preta, head of project finance LATAM at MUFG, mentioned in connection with Scala’s Chile transaction, the deal set “a precedent for responsible growth” [xi]. Sophisticated PPA structuring is consequently emerging as a key value driver in data‑centre investment.

What is clear is that Latin America’s data-centre investment cycle is no longer constrained by capital appetite alone. Success now hinges on execution, intelligence and the ability to align power, policy and financing in increasingly complex markets. Platforms and jurisdictions that treat these elements as core design features — rather than downstream problems — will capture the next wave of growth.

Winning in Latin America will go to those who make power, policy and financing foundational, not incidental.

Sponsored by IJGlobal:

[i] IJGlobal, 2025, OpenAI preps $25bn data centre in Argentina, in-text communication format  

[ii] IJGlobal, 2025, Actis launches Terranova, in-text communication format  

[iii] IJGlobal, 2025, Patria to back ByteDance data centre, Brazil, in-text communication format  

[iv] IJGlobal, 2025, Scala closes $328m Chile data centre deal, in-text communication format  

[v] IJGlobal, 2025, Scala secures credit line from BNDES, in-text communication format   

[vi] IJGlobal, 2025, Odata secures LatAm data center financing, in-text communication format   

[vii] IJGlobal, 2025, OpenAI preps $25bn data centre in Argentina, in-text communication format 

[viii] IJGlobal, 2025, Elea receives Brazil data centre contract, in-text communication format   

[ix] IJGlobal, 2025, Elea signs data centre hub MoU, Brazil, in-text communication format   

[x] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/latin-america-solar-power-purchase-agreement-ppa-s13ff/

[xi] IJGlobal, 2025, Scala closes $328m Chile data centre deal, in-text communication format