Featured News Oil and Gas Newsletter March 2026

Redata Bill advances in Congress after the Provisional Presidential Decree (MP) expires and awaits Senate Consideration  

On February 25, 2026, the Provisional Presidential Decree (MP) No. 1318/2025, which had established the Special Taxation Regime for Data Center Services (Redata), expired. In its place, Bill No. 278/2026 was introduced, which seeks to incorporate the guidelines of Redata. 

The bill grants tax incentives, including the suspension of federal taxes on the purchase of machinery and equipment for datacenters, subject to compliance with certain conditions. Among these, the most notable are the requirement to use energy from clean or renewable sources, the adoption of water efficiency standards, and investments in research, development, and innovation (R&D) 

Under the draft legislation currently under discussion, projects that meet their entire electricity demand through supply contracts or self-generation from sources that are preferably clean or renewable remain eligible for tax benefits, with no explicit mention of natural gas or biomethane. 

In this context, Senator Laércio Oliveira (PP/SE) introduced Amendment No. 4, while Senator Esperidião Amin (PP/SC) introduced Amendment No. 16; both amendments propose the inclusion of natural gas and biomethane in the list of eligible clean or renewable energy sources, 

The bill is currently awaiting placement on the Senate’s agenda by the President of the Federal Senate. 

CARF: interstate natural gas pipeline is entitled to a tax benefit granted by SUDENE

On February 26, 2026, Transportadora Associada de Gás S.A. (“TAG”) achieved an important victory in Administrative Council for Tax Appeals (CARF), with a ruling guaranting that the company was entitled to a tax benefit upon the revenues obtained with the transportation of natural gas between states. 

SUDENE had granted a 75% reduction in Corporate Income Tax for the activities carried out by the company in the State of Alagoas. However, the Brazilian Federal Revenue Service argued that this benefit would not apply to revenues obtained from transporting natural gas from the State of Alagoas to the State of Pernambuco, as it would not be possible to determine the flow of gas through the pipeline. 

During the proceeding, the company was able to prove that all the gas transported through the pipeline during the period entered in the State of Alagoas and was destined for the State of Pernambuco and, therefore, was entitled to the benefit granted by SUDENE. 

ANP approves and submits BRA’s proposal for gas transporters to public consultation 

On February 27, 2026, at the 1.117th ANP Board Meeting, Public Consultation No. 3/2026 was approved, which seeks to define the methodology applicable to the valuation of the Regulatory Asset Base (BRA) and determinations regarding the investment plans of natural gas transporters for the 2026-2030 Tariff Cycle. The public consultation, originally scheduled to finish on March 19, 2026, has been postponed until April 3, 2026. 

Board Decision No. 142/2026 approved the technical notes from the Infrastructure and Transportation Superintendence (SIM) that analyze and propose methodologies for valuing the BRA of carriers. In addition, it published the documents related to the public consultation regulatory process on the 2026-2030 Tariff Cycle. 

As a result of ANP’s analysis, a reduction of BRL 3.3 billion (24%) was proposed in relation to the transporters’ submissions, together with the adoption of the Replacement Cost New (RCN) and Inflation Adjusted Historical Cost (IAHC) methodologies. The Board decided not to apply the Recovered Capital Method (RCM) for the review of the BRA of NTS and TAG, on the grounds that there is a lack of sufficient technical support and information to do so. 

Normative Instruction No. RFB 2,308/2026: new rules to the Repetro-Industrialização authorization 

On February 27, 2026, Normative Instruction No. RFB 2,308/2026 was published to introduce new rules the regulation of Repetro-Industrialização. The new requirements include: 

• the applicant must have a CNAE code corresponding to an industrial activity permitted under the regime; and  

• the applicant must present a contract demonstrating the obligation to manufacture the products, even if production has not yet started by the date of the authorization request. 

AGEMS updates rules for passing on gas and transportation costs in distribution tariffs 

On March 10, 2026, AGEMS published Ordinance No. 330/2026, which amends provisions of Ordinance No. 281/2024 and updates the mechanism for adjusting and recovering variations in the price of natural gas and transportation in the tariffs applied to piped gas distribution services in Mato Grosso do Sul.  

The rule revises and modernizes essential definitions for tariff calculation, such as additional transportation charges, penalties, gas prices, and the recovery portion, in addition to detailing new operational concepts, such as contracted daily quantity, scheduled daily quantity, and daily gas withdrawal quantity.  

The Ordinance also redefines the criteria for calculating the recovery portion, equivalent to the balance of the graphic account divided by the projected gas volume. For the residential, commercial, and cogeneration segments, the projection used corresponds to the following 12 months, and for the industrial segment and other users, the period considered is six months.  

Another important change is the determination that the sale price of gas passed on in tariffs must be applied equally to all users, except in cases with specific contracts and for free market consumers.  

The State of Rio de Janeiro obtains a partial victory in an administrative proceeding concerning the collection of ICMS on the delivery of profit oil under a production‑sharing contract.

The Plenary Council of the Taxpayers’ Council of the State of Rio de Janeiro ruled on the Special Appeal filed by Petrobras in an administrative proceeding related to a tax assessment of ICMS, FECP, and penalties for the failure to pay the tax and the failure to issue the ancillary document upon the delivery of profit oil to the Federal Government under the production‑sharing regime. 

After the first- and second‑instance administrative decisions upheld the assessment, the Plenary Council of the Taxpayers’ Council, due to a procedural issue, did not analyze the merits of the dispute and only admitted the portion of the Special Appeal concerning the statute of limitations. 

This material is for informational purposes only. Our Oil & Gas team is available to provide specific legal advice.