Brian Zinchuk is editor and owner of Pipeline Online
REGINA – When Bell Canada swooped in earlier this year with their massive 300 megawatt AI data centre project just outside of Regina, they clearly knew they needed to move fast before the landscape changed. A major part of why Saskatchewan was chosen was the fact we had recently announced SaskPower would rebuild its coal fleet, and bring retired units back online. The data centre closely matched the restored power generation capacity of those units, and construction is now well underway with startling speed.
But in recent months, there’s been a lot of concern raised about the impact of data centres not only in Saskatchewan, but across North America. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said Manitoba wouldn’t be approving any, for instance. And in Saskatchewan, the opposition New Democratic Party has been frequently questioning what’s going on with data centres and their impact.
Bell’s new AI data centre under construction near Regina late June, 2026. The progress since then has been substantial. Photo courtesy Mike Singleton Photos
While the backlash has been growing, anyone who uses their cellphone for Google, Facebook, Twitter, Gmail or nearly any other major app is, in fact, using a data centre. The online protests about data centre quite literally use data centres to make their posts. If you use a smartphone, you are using data centres.
With all that in perspective, on Aug. 27 Minister of Crown Investments Corporation and Minister Responsible for SaskPower Jeremy Harrison released new guidelines for data centre development. The key point is new data centres will have to supply their own power to fit their needs.
And that’s why Bell got in just under the wire. While it is building natural gas generation as backup, just in case, it will principally be drawing on the SaskPower grid, soon to be one of SaskPower’s largest paying customers.
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The Aug. 27 Government of Saskatchewan press release said, “Following feedback from business, labour, industry, Indigenous partners and the public, Saskatchewan’s Data Centre Framework provides clear principles for any future projects, clarity for municipalities and the public, and ensures any new project delivers meaningful benefits to Saskatchewan residents and businesses.
“The reality is that AI is here, and it will play a significant role in our lives and our economy,” Minister Jeremy Harrison said. “The real question is where the infrastructure that powers AI will be built and whose laws will govern it. We can build that infrastructure here in Canada, create Canadian jobs, attract billions of dollars in investment and ensure Canadian data is protected by Canadian laws and regulations. The alternative is to see that infrastructure, investment and opportunity built in jurisdictions like the United States or outside North America. Our government chooses Canada.”
The release continued, “Six key principles will guide the assessment of future data centre projects. These principles focus on Canadian ownership, support for Canadian data and AI sovereignty, the creation of Saskatchewan jobs and partnerships, industry experience, self-supplied power generation, and a centralized provincial intake process.
“A key element of the framework is the requirement for any new proponents to supply their own power. While Saskatchewan has reliable, affordable baseload power, this approach provides consistency for new developments while ensuring any new projects do not place additional pressure on Saskatchewan’s electricity system or displace any interprovincial export capacity.”
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“Companies continue to choose Saskatchewan to build and invest because they see a province that is committed to sustainable, responsible growth,” Trade and Export Development Minister Warren Kaeding said. “As interest in data centre development grows, today’s framework provides investors clarity, while ensuring projects are managed responsibly to bring benefits to the province and our people, including the creation of new jobs and investment into our communities.”
“As Saskatchewan explores the opportunities presented by data centres, development must be guided by a consistent and transparent framework,” SUMA President Randy Goulden said. “SUMA welcomes the release of Saskatchewan’s Data Centre Framework and looks forward to working with the provincial government to ensure municipal perspectives are reflected in its implementation. Municipalities are on the front lines of future data centre development and must have a seat at the table to help shape decisions and ensure local communities share in the benefits.”
“The Data Centre Framework released today by the province provides consistency and clarity for future data centre development while respecting local decision-making,” SARM President Bill Huber said. “Rural municipalities will continue to exercise their established planning and development authorities, ensuring local priorities and community interests remain central to every proposal.”
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“Saskatchewan’s business community recognizes data centre development as a significant economic opportunity for the province,” Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce Prabha Ramaswamy said in the same release. “A framework with clear principles provides a transparent process by which we can determine how data centres are established and managed. This clarity allows us to pursue growth responsibly while ensuring our infrastructure and sovereignty are protected. When investors understand the standards and decisions are made consistently, both businesses and communities benefit.”
“Earlier this year, Bell Canada announced an historic investment in Saskatchewan. A 300-megawatt data centre in the Rural Municipality of Sherwood, that will generate up to $12 billion in economic value. During this announcement, Bell Canada was joined by George Gordon First Nation Chief Shawn Longman and signed an agreement focused on Indigenous participation and workforce development,” the release said, adding, “The Government of Saskatchewan considers Indigenous participation as key to the development of future data centre projects. Indigenous partnerships, participation or equity is encouraged in future projects.
“The framework will also create a streamlined and coordinated process for evaluating proposals, providing clarity for investors and help the Government of Saskatchewan to assess projects consistently and efficiently.”
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Project developers will be responsible for determining whether their proposed development requires an Environmental Impact Assessment and, where necessary, completing all applicable environmental review requirements. This ensures potential environmental impacts are identified and addressed in accordance with provincial and federal legislation. Technological advances have allowed for innovation environmental solutions including in the data centre currently under development in Saskatchewan, whereby a closed loop system for cooling eliminates the need to draw from regional water supplies.
By focusing on Canadian-owned and headquartered businesses, protecting Canadian data sovereignty, maintaining affordable and reliable utility services for existing customers, and overall economic benefits to the province, the government said.
Not all data centres are massive, or require massive amounts of power. The release pointed out that SaskTel currently owns and operates six data centres for cloud storage.
It added that Bell Canada’s 300MW project for compute capacity is under construction in RM of Sherwood, providing an estimated $720 million in provincial revenues to be reinvested into programs, services or infrastructure along with more than 1,600 jobs and $12 billion in economic activity.
Additionally, Saskatchewan currently has over 30 applications for data centre developments in the queue, which are being evaluated based on the new framework.
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NDP reaction
NDP Shadow Minister of Tech, Innovation and AI Brittney Senger said in an emailed statement:
Today, the Sask. Party “announced” a “new” framework for data centers. This was an opportunity for them to rebuild the trust they broke with their refusal to consult or engage honestly with communities.
Instead, what Saskatchewan people got was a six-point infographic and more lies from a Minister who has demonstrated time and time again that he can’t be trusted.
Jeremy Harrison claims that the Sask. Party has already been operating under these guidelines for months. If this were actually true, where was the transparency and accountability during the development of the Bell AI data centre project? Why not answer some basic questions? Why not share this policy? Did the Moose Jaw data centre somehow violate this six-point infographic?
Even the Sask. Party government’s hand-picked Reeve for the RM of Sherwood indicated that “It was clear the general public was not aware of what was going on,”
Transparency cannot be an afterthought. It’s foundational to any major project being planned, communicated, and approved.
Details around this framework remain nonexistent, and questions remain unanswered. We will continue to push the Sask. Party and Jeremy Harrison to be honest with the public and treat Saskatchewan people with the respect they deserve when it comes to these projects.
It’s time for a change.
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