POINT TUPPER, N.S., Oct. 18, 2026 | EverWind Fuels announced Oct. 16 that Anthropic, the maker of Claude, has signed a 20-year lease for an 18,600-square-metre data centre in Point Tupper, N.S., part of a $10-billion plan the company calls the largest private investment in Nova Scotia’s history, The Canadian Press reported. EverWind did not disclose the value of the lease.
The first phase would draw 95 megawatts and is scheduled to open in late 2027, with a 325-megawatt expansion expected in mid-2028 that would bring total demand to 420 megawatts. EverWind says $8 billion of the $10 billion goes to the data centre campus and $2 billion to onshore wind projects. The company says the build would create 2,000 construction jobs and 215 permanent positions paying $135,000 to $185,000 a year.
What EverWind and Anthropic Have Disclosed
EverWind says cooling water would come from Landrie Lake through a closed-loop system that averages 100,000 litres a day in phase one and 500,000 litres a day after the expansion. The company says the larger figure is about 1% of the lake’s safe daily yield of 34 million litres, and that it will not release cooling fluid into local waterways.
On power, EverWind says it will cover the full cost of energy connections and network upgrades so existing Nova Scotia ratepayers are not charged. Its own wind farms will not be ready by the 2027 opening, but a provincial grid operator study says existing infrastructure can support the site. EverWind also plans about 200 megawatt-hours of battery storage on site. For wider context on how much electricity AI infrastructure uses, see our AI energy statistics page.
EverWind holds environmental approvals for four mainland wind farms totalling 650 megawatts, 51% owned by a First Nations consortium led by Membertou. Membertou Development Corporation is negotiating a 9% equity stake in the data centre itself. EverWind says it will fund the build with its own capital and now plans to seek financing from banks and pension plans.
CEO Trent Vichie said, “Speed matters, and capable partners matter and this is something that we can do.” NDP Opposition Leader Claudia Chender said, “The Houston government is supporting this project without any discussion, consultation, legislation or regulations.” Premier Tim Houston has indicated his government does not plan to legislate new data centre rules and will rely on existing environmental and industrial approvals.
What This Means for Canadian Businesses
Reuters headlined the deal as Anthropic’s first data centre lease in Canada. Until now, Anthropic has mainly bought computing power from existing providers, including Google infrastructure in Ontario and Quebec and British Columbia data centres run by Iren through Fluidstack, according to HR Reporter’s coverage of Anthropic’s August job postings. Those postings sought a leader responsible for bringing “gigawatts of compute online in Canada.” Leasing a dedicated facility fits that stated goal, though Anthropic has not laid out a wider Canadian strategy. For background on the company, see our guide on what Anthropic is.
The scale is easier to judge against one comparison. At 420 megawatts, the full build is about 42% of the one-gigawatt, roughly $13-billion Meta data centre announced north of Edmonton in July. The cost figures are not directly comparable, since EverWind’s $10 billion includes $2 billion of wind projects.
Two of EverWind’s own numbers are worth checking. Dividing 500,000 litres by the lake’s 34 million litres a day gives about 1.5%, not 1%, though either figure is small, and the numbers say nothing about how the lake behaves in dry seasons. And 215 permanent jobs at $135,000 to $185,000 add up to roughly $29 million to $40 million a year in payroll, if every position is filled at the stated pay.
For Canadian companies that use Claude, one question is not answered in the coverage reviewed: whether Canadian customers’ data would be processed in Nova Scotia. Anthropic said Canada is the sixth-largest user of Claude worldwide, and the Canadian Press reported the site would power Claude and meet Canadian demand. Businesses with data residency requirements should wait for Anthropic to confirm where Canadian workloads will run. Our Anthropic statistics page tracks the company’s growth and usage figures.
Public pushback elsewhere in Canada gives this project a political backdrop. Oakville and Mississauga, Ont., recently passed one-year data centre moratoriums, and Manitoba’s premier rejected a large data centre near Winnipeg in June, according to the Canadian Press.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is leasing the EverWind data centre in Nova Scotia?
Anthropic, the maker of Claude, has signed a 20-year lease for an 18,600-square-metre data centre in Point Tupper, N.S., EverWind Fuels announced Oct. 16. EverWind did not disclose the lease value.
How much power will the Nova Scotia data centre use?
The first phase would draw 95 megawatts, with a 325-megawatt expansion expected in mid-2028 for a total of 420 megawatts, according to The Canadian Press. The data centre is scheduled to open in late 2027.