Here how every Canadian province and territory is governing data centres

From stand-alone policies to disincentivizing investment, here’s a guide from coast to coast. Data centre development is ramping up in Canada, with the giant facilities meant to power AI cropping up across the country. While the US has already spent several years building out the infrastructure behind the AI revolution, Canada is just now beginning to crest the wave of the data centre expansion boom. While data centres aren’t new, the AI-enabling hyperscalers making daily headlines present a new set of challenges for policymakers. While data centres aren’t new, the AI-enabling hyperscalers making daily headlines present a new set of challenges for policymakers. Mordor Intelligence, a market research company, pegs Canada’s data centre market at nearly $14 billion USD ($19 billion CAD). That figure is poised to more than double by 2031, particularly as Canada focuses on its digital sovereignty amid escalating tensions with the US, which has historically housed much of Canada’s data. While data centres aren’t new, the AI-enabling hyperscalers making daily headlines present a new set of challenges for policymakers, including grid reliability, environmental impacts, and increased energy costs, all of which have contributed to strong public opposition in many jurisdictions. To help us understand how these…