Elea Sets Board to Scale Brazil AI Data Centres

Following its acquisition by I Squared Capital, Elea Data Centers has appointed a new board tasked with accelerating the rollout of AI-ready digital infrastructure across Brazil.

The company, which operates a distributed data centre platform across Brazil, has instated a new board of directors designed to combine investment expertise, digital infrastructure experience and energy sector knowledge.

The move comes as demand for AI-ready facilities and hyperscale investments continues to rise across Latin America.

At the heart of the changes is a clear objective: accelerating the build-out of large-scale, high-density data centre infrastructure while supporting the next phase of growth for Elea’s nationwide footprint.

Tim Formuziewich, Managing Director for Latin America at I Squared Capital, has taken on the role of chairman, Alessandro Lombardi's previous role.

Alessandro continues to lead the business as CEO under a seven-year mandate, also serving on the board.

Building for AI demand

The leadership changes arrive at a time when operators across the region are positioning themselves to capture growing demand for compute capacity linked to AI workloads.

For data centre providers, that means delivering facilities capable of supporting high-density deployments, advanced cooling requirements and increasing power demands.

Brazil is emerging as a key market in that development, with cloud providers, enterprises and hyperscale customers all seeking additional capacity.

Alessandro Lombardi, CEO and Founder of Elea Data Centers, says: "The combination of our new and existing board members brings together a highly complementary set of capabilities across digital infrastructure, energy and global investment, reinforcing Elea's strategic vision and our unique position to meet the rapidly growing demand for AI-ready infrastructure in Brazil.

"With this leadership team and I Squared Capital's support, we are well-positioned to accelerate the expansion of our platform and further strengthen Brazil's role as a leading global digital hub."

Alongside Alessandro and Tim, the board includes Andrew E. Crouch, Managing Director at I Squared Capital, Ibai Gil Calzón, Operating Director at I Squared Capital and energy executive Andre Dorf.

Existing directors Tesh Durvasula, CEO of AtlasEdge, and Julia Dias Leite, CEO of the Brazilian International Relations Center (CEBRI), remain on the board, providing continuity as the company pursues expansion plans.

Expansion plans take centre stage

The board’s priorities are closely tied to Elea’s infrastructure roadmap.

A major focus is the continued growth of the company’s network of nine interconnected data centre campuses across Brazil.

At the same time, Elea is advancing development of its 3-gigawatt Rio AI City project.

The initiative is designed to support next-generation compute environments and cloud deployments, positioning the company to accommodate large-scale AI requirements.

Tim says: "I am excited to serve as chairman of Elea Data Centers as it enters this new phase of hyper-growth.

"Our immediate focus will be on leveraging I Squared's global infrastructure experience to accelerate Elea's expansion plans, ensuring we continue to provide sustainable, high-performance digital solutions that meet the complex demands of hyperscale and enterprise customers across Latin America."

Infrastructure expertise joins operational continuity

The composition of the new board highlights the blend of skills Elea is bringing together as it scales.

Tim contributes a background spanning infrastructure investment roles at organisations including Brookfield Asset Management, CPP Investments and IMCO, alongside his current position at I Squared Capital.

Andrew adds experience in acquisitions and communications infrastructure businesses, with a focus on digital infrastructure investments across the Americas.

Ibai brings expertise in governance, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions and operational transformation.

Andre strengthens the board’s energy credentials following leadership roles in renewable energy and infrastructure businesses, an important consideration as operators seek reliable power supplies for growing AI workloads.

The existing directors also bring substantial sector experience. Tesh has spent more than 25 years across data centre development, finance, sales, marketing and real estate, including leadership positions at AtlasEdge, Africa Data Centres and CyrusOne.

Julia contributes experience in international relations, governance and engagement across public and private sector organisations.

As Elea expands its footprint, sustainability is part of the company’s strategy. The operator says it will continue running its facilities using renewable energy, aligning growth in digital infrastructure with its environmental commitments.

For Brazil’s data centre sector, the strengthened board signals Elea’s intention to move quickly as AI investment and demand for hyperscale capacity continue to gather pace.