‘Show us don’t tell us’: Chender on AI data centre 

Nova Scotia NDP Leader Claudia Chender has criticized a lack of legislation surrounding the proposed AI data centre in Point Tupper.

“Show us don’t tell us,” she directed the Tim Houston government at a press conference outside the NDP’s party office in Halifax on Thursday afternoon. 

In October, Halifax-based EverWind announced plans to build an $8-billion data centre campus in Point Tupper, as well as $2 billion to expand onshore wind power development to run the facility. The American artificial intelligence firm Anthropic will lease the project. 

Chender was joined at the press conference by two parents who shared concerns about the potential financial strain associated with the data centre.  

“To see government choose a project that could potentially increase our power bills and make things harder is frustrating,” says Bethany Isaksen, a registered nurse. Despite living in a two-income household, Isaksen noted that it was already difficult enough to support her growing family. 

Sam Walerickton has written to Premier Tim Houston about similar concerns. “I’m afraid my daughter will never be a big sister because we can’t afford to support another child,” she said.  

The 18,600-square-metre data centre is expected to come online in late 2027, and will draw on 95 megawatts of power continuously, before scaling up to 325 megawatts by mid-2028. During its initial phase, the facility will rely entirely on Nova Scotia’s existing electrical grid for power.   

Funded by private capital and revenue from its 20-year lease agreement with Anthropic, EverWind says it will cover the cost of all electricity infrastructure and power grid upgrades related to the data centre, so that it will not increase power rates for customers. 

Chender says that “promises from American billionaires are not enough” and wants new legislation in place to reinforce EverWind’s claim. 

Last week, Houston told reporters that existing approval processes and legislation are sufficient. “Do we want to do a piece of legislation for every business that sets up in Nova Scotia? Probably not,” he said. 

As the proposed AI data centre continues to raise alarms, many Nova Scotians are pushing back and demanding answers. This weekend, seven province-wide rallies are planned to protest the data centre.

Chender says she will be in Cape Breton on Saturday to participate in one of the rallies.