Nova Scotia Residents Seek Answers on Proposed AI Data Centre for Anthropic
Residents near Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia, are demanding more information about a proposed EverWind Fuels data centre intended to support American software company Anthropic. While the project promises thousands of jobs, concerns over water use, electricity demand, and limited public consultation have prompted planned protests.
EverWind Fuels has announced plans to build a data centre designed to support artificial intelligence operations for American software giant Anthropic. The proposed facility would be located in the Point Tupper industrial park in Richmond County, adjacent to the Town of Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia. Company officials hope to open the centre late next year and intend to hold public information sessions starting next month.
The announcement has drawn mixed reactions from local residents, many of whom say they were not consulted before the project was made public. Phillip Landriault expressed concern about potential environmental impacts and stated that the company should have provided more information to the public earlier. Benjamin Lauzon, who works in Port Hawkesbury, is organizing protests slated to take place around the province next month due to the perceived lack of public information.
Other residents are weighing the project's economic promise against its resource demands. Donna Babin, from River Bourgeois, said she is concerned about water and electricity usage but is not completely opposed, citing the need for jobs. Jack Ronalds suggested that any large development should provide equitable benefits to Port Hawkesbury because the town contributes housing, roads, and workers.
According to EverWind, construction of the data centre is expected to provide 2,000 jobs, and operation will require more than 200 full-time employees. The company intends to power the facility with onshore wind from farms it plans to build. Until those wind farms are ready, the data centre will draw power from the provincial energy grid, and EverWind states it will pay for that usage and that the project will not cost other power users any extra.
To address water concerns, the company plans to minimize usage through a closed-loop cooling system. This system would be supplemented occasionally by water from the Landrie Lake supply, using about one per cent of the total capacity.
The proposal has also reached the political arena. Opposition politicians have called on the Nova Scotia government to hold a legislative debate and turn guidelines into enforceable law, a suggestion the government has rejected.