Morales has insisted on launching the study commission requested by his group in the regional parliament last Friday to analyze the impact of this infrastructure. The PSOE wants the body to also address the stable jobs they will create, their energy needs, water consumption and the consequences for municipalities and other productive sectors. Data centers have already been the subject of parliamentary initiatives related to resource consumption and transparency surrounding their development in Aragon.
The request comes after socialists raised questions about the payment of the Business Activities Tax by Amazon’s data centers in Aragon. “It is not that we are against data centers. What we support is transparency and information,” Morales said, defending the importance of this infrastructure for technological development, but warning that it should not be established “behind the public’s back.”
The lawmaker also focused on the municipalities where these facilities are planned and called for mayors and residents to be informed from the outset about their characteristics and effects. “We need information, we need transparency,” Morales insisted, saying it is necessary to have all the data to assess both the advantages and the costs associated with these investments.
The PSOE has added to this request for greater scrutiny over possible “revolving doors” following the hiring of Marta Ríos, former director of Strategic Investments at the Government of Aragon, by QTS Data Centers, a company owned by Blackstone. Morales is seeking explanations from the regional executive about the move into the private sector by someone who held responsibility for strategic investments and is calling for sufficient controls in situations of this kind.
The socialists maintain that their aim is not to stop data centers from arriving, but to understand the conditions under which they are established and the return they bring to Aragon. “We understand that they are necessary and important, especially in the technological world we live in,” Morales said, calling for the regional parliament to debate their taxation, public aid, employment, and energy and water needs.
