Anthropic signs its first Canadian data-centre lease: EverWind's C$10 billion campus in Nova Scotia

Anthropic, the developer of the Claude AI assistant, has signed a long-term lease at a data-centre campus that energy company EverWind is building at Point Tupper, near Port Hawkesbury on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. It is Anthropic’s first data-centre deal in Canada. EverWind announced the project on Friday, 16 October; Anthropic confirmed it was the tenant later that day.

The numbers

• EverWind put the total investment at about C$10 billion: C$8 billion for the data centre and C$2 billion for onshore wind projects.
• The first phase, 95 megawatts, is due online in late 2027; a 325 MW expansion is targeted for 2028, subject to regulatory conditions, for 420 MW in total. CBC notes Nova Scotia’s whole generating capacity is close to 3,000 MW.
• CBC reports Anthropic’s lease of the first phase runs for at least 20 years.
• EverWind expects about 2,000 construction jobs and 215 permanent positions.
• A closed-loop cooling system would use about 100,000 litres of water a day in phase one and about 500,000 litres at full build-out.

Power and politics

EverWind and Anthropic say they will pay for grid upgrades so costs are not passed on to electricity customers. EverWind’s wind farms will not be ready at first, so the site will initially rely on the existing grid. Anthropic’s Jacob Glick said the company wants its infrastructure “closer to the people who rely on it”. Provincial NDP leader Claudia Chender criticised the lack of regulation and asked why residents should trust the company. A First Nations consortium led by Membertou Development Corporation is negotiating a possible ownership stake.