Two new large-scale data centres are set to break ground in Vancouver this year.
May 13, 2026
Two new large-scale data centres are set to break ground in Vancouver this year.
There are 16 data centres already dotted around Vancouver, with a majority located in the downtown core and Mount Pleasant. They have various purposes, with some serving as colocation centers—where retail customers can rent equipment and bandwidth—and others purpose-built for AI.
The two new data centres coming to Vancouver, a joint project between telecommunications giant Telus and the federal government, are meant to improve and increase the scale of Canada’s sovereign AI infrastructure, Telus said Monday. The project was proposed under the federal government’s AI initiatives introduced in 2025 that support the development of these large-scale data centres.
These centres have been quietly popping up across Vancouver for a number of years, occupying hundreds of thousands of square feet in unassuming buildings. These tech towers have been storing cloud data and hosting website domains for over a decade in the city. Their existence is not necessarily benign, though.
...Many data centres use evaporative cooling methods to keep their computers at functioning temperatures. These cooling methods have become a primary critique of the massive centres, as they require the use of freshwater. According to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, large data centres can use up to 19 million litres of water every day, and since nearly 80 per cent of that water evaporates, it can’t be reused.
Telus said these new centres will use a different method for cooling called a closed-loop cooling system that will reduce their water usage by up to 80 per cent.
Still, the amount of water needed for these AI data centres is a big concern among community members, especially given the state of B.C.’s water resources. On May 1, Vancouver activated Stage 2 water restrictions to help conserve drinking water in anticipation of a hot, dry summer with low snowpack.
“Metro Vancouver is running out of water. I’ve heard that they’re going to do their best, they’re going to try and use recycled water and it’s going to be a closed loop. But I still have concerns about how much water these are going to use,” Coun. Sean Orr said.
...In recent years, B.C. has seen an increase in extreme heat events throughout the summer months, with more on the horizon. The heat dome that came to the province in 2021 saw over 600 heat-related deaths, and even more adverse health effects, with temperatures in the Lower Mainland breaking previous temperature records by 5 degrees or more.
“Where does this fit into building a city that is actually working to protect disabled life, and life in general,” Gabrielle Peters, disabled writer and policy analyst said. A majority of the people who died during the 2021 heat dome also had pre-existing chronic conditions and limited mobility.
The federal government says that extreme heat is the leading cause of illness and death from weather-related hazards in Canada. Peters argued the city remains ill-prepared for serious heat events, and expressed concern about the impact the data centres could have on temperatures.
[Image Description: Close up photo of a bright red sticker reading "we are living in A MASS DISABLING EVENT. don't ignore long covid. -Berlin Buyers Club" on a graffitied and peeling blue lamp post/pedestrian crossing.
Disney's Frozen x Stanley BFL Canada Stage x South Granville. (via Mark Halliday)
Arts Club's restaging has the challenging task of trying its best to live up to the high production values of the wildly successful Broadway movie musical stage adaptation. Through a streamlined narrative with more modestly spare dressings, this Frozen feels like an amusingly stripped-down remounting that's refocused on the chilly musical drama. It's firmly centred on the sisterly conflict highlighted emotionally by the hit songs everyone now knows.
Cast: Synthia Yusuf (as Anna) and Steffanie Davis (as Bulda).
