Scala AI City — Eldorado do Sul: Capacity, Readiness and Investor Analysis

FJI source-qualified: four-document gate met, including project-specific government evidence. Qualification evidence and decisions →

Project status: Planned AI campus with reported grid authorization; current construction and energized IT load unverified. Capacity scope: 54 MW initial IT plan announced in 2024; 120 MW grid demand reported for 2028 is a separate scope. How we verify evidence.

Published October 12, 2026 · Evidence reviewed October 12, 2026 · Planned AI campus with reported grid authorization; current construction and energized IT load unverified

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The project in one minute

Scala AI City is a planned phased AI campus in Eldorado do Sul, supported by state, municipal and developer records. The 2024 announcement identified 54 MW of initial IT capacity and an approximately $500 million first-phase investment. These remain announced scopes; the review does not establish currently operating equipment or customer utilization.

Capacity figures describe different things

Initial IT plans, grid demand and long-term expansion potential cannot be added together or treated as interchangeable. Scala’s original announcement describes 54 MW of IT capacity. September regulatory reporting describes 120 MW of demand associated with a planned 2028 connection. That larger electrical figure is not independent confirmation of a 120 MW operating IT facility.

Grid progress and remaining conditions

Tele.Síntese reports that ANEEL authorized a transmission connection through Dispatch 3506, dated September 3 and published September 10, with January 2028 connection assumed in the access study. It describes a connection through the Guaíba 3–Nova Santa Rita line and technical monitoring conditions. The original dispatch was not directly retrieved; the account is attributed to the dated report. Authorization is not delivered power.

Financial-guarantee dispute

MegaWhat reported an unsuccessful administrative appeal seeking relief from transmission-access guarantee requirements. For AI City, it also reported July federal-court relief allowing the permanent transmission-use contract to be signed without prior presentation of the contested guarantee. That is distinct from the Jundiaí project covered in the same story. No current signed court disposition was verified, and we do not assume the disputed requirement has permanently disappeared.

Location and readiness

State and municipal documents place the campus in Eldorado do Sul. The marker represents the municipality, not a surveyed entrance or parcel boundary. We classify the campus as announced / development-stage because the reviewed sources do not establish a current construction start, completed campus, environmental-permit completion or accepted computing service. The reported 2028 connection horizon remains a plan.

Timeline

September 2024: state and company announcement. November 2024: municipal protocol. August 2026: independent reporting on transmission guarantees and court relief. September 2026: reported connection authorization. The next evidence should reconcile current guarantee obligations and prove phase-specific permits, physical execution and power acceptance.

Investor takeaway · Our analysis

The project has stronger documented institutional and electrical groundwork than an unsupported AI-city concept. However, access arrangements and governmental support do not establish financing, demand, supplier revenue or operating margins. Scala is privately held; no public semiconductor supplier contract is inferred. Assess the first useful commissioned phase separately from long-term expansion ambitions.

Sources and verification

5 distinct documents reviewed, including project-specific government evidence and independent reporting. Multiple accounts of one announcement are not independent milestone confirmations. Current unknowns remain explicit.

1. Scala Data Centers · 2024-09-11

   Primary company disclosure — 2024 announcement identifies Eldorado do Sul, initial $500 million investment and 54 MW IT plan; expansion and efficiency claims are prospective.

2. Rio Grande do Sul government · 2024-09-11

   Project-specific government evidence — Records state letter of intent, location and initial R$3 billion investment plan; not financing close or commissioned capacity.

3. Eldorado do Sul municipality · 2024-11-21

   Project-specific government evidence — Records November 2024 municipal protocol for AI campus; supports identity and locality, not operating status.

4. Tele.Síntese / Rafael Bucco · 2026-09-10

   Independent regulatory reporting — Reports ANEEL Dispatch 3506, planned January 2028 connection and 120 MW demand; underlying dispatch not directly retrieved.

5. MegaWhat / Natália Bezutti · 2026-08-31

   Independent regulatory reporting — Reports rejected guarantee-waiver appeal and July court relief allowing AI City transmission contract; current judicial disposition not verified.