Saint John currently has about 3–4 data-centre facilities
- Equinix SJ1 — 7 McIntosh Street — operating. Data Center Map
- Carbon60/Cirrus9 DC1 — Market Square — operating.
- Carbon60/Cirrus9 DC2 — Prince William Street — operating.
- A Beacon/VoltaGrid facility is listed by some directories, but this is actually the proposed Spruce Lake AI Data Centre, not an operating facility. Data Center Map
So, if we’re counting operating facilities, I would describe Saint John as having roughly three established data-centre facilities, rather than four.
And Saint John is now attracting major new AI data centres
The big project is the 390-MW Spruce Lake AI Data Centre proposed by Beacon New Brunswick and VoltaGrid. It remains under environmental/impact assessment and is not yet an operating data centre. Government of New Brunswick
There is also a second proposed data-centre project from Connecticut-based Cross River Infrastructure Partners. Its initial proposal calls for 50 MW of firm power, with possible expansion. Global News
Bottom line: Saint John has about three established operating data-centre facilities, with at least two major new projects being proposed.
For figuring out data centers in Saint John, here’s a capacity option.
Saint John Data Centres — What We Know
| Project | Location | Size / Power | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equinix SJ1 | 7 McIntosh St. | Existing facility | Operating |
| Carbon60 / Cirrus9 DC1 | Market Square | Existing facility | Operating |
| Carbon60 / Cirrus9 DC2 | Prince William St. | Existing facility | Operating |
| Spruce Lake AI Data Centre — Beacon + VoltaGrid | Spruce Lake Industrial Park, Lorneville | 390 MW data centre + 190 MW gas generation | Proposed / under review |
| Cross River Infrastructure Partners | Saint John industrial area | Initially 50 MW | Proposed / exploratory |
Public data-centre directories currently list four Saint John facilities, but one of those is the proposed Beacon facility, so it should not be counted as an operating centre. Data Center Map
The big issue: Spruce Lake
The Beacon New Brunswick/VoltaGrid project is by far the largest proposed development. The provincial environmental-assessment record describes a 390-MW data centre, accompanied by a 190-MW natural-gas generation facility and new transmission infrastructure capable of supplying another 200 MW from the NB Power grid. Government of New Brunswick
The federal Impact Assessment Agency says the project is still in progress, with a designation request being assessed as of September 2026. IAAC
A second project has emerged
This is particularly important for Saint John residents. Cross River Infrastructure Partners, a Connecticut-based company, has been exploring another data-centre campus in Saint John. Its initial request calls for 50 MW of firm grid power, with potential expansion later. Global News
What this could mean for NB Power
The proposed projects are dramatically different from Saint John’s existing data-centre infrastructure.
Existing facilities: relatively modest enterprise/colocation operations.
Proposed projects: potentially hundreds of megawatts of continuous electricity demand.
For perspective, the Spruce Lake proposal alone involves 390 MW of computing capacity, plus a proposed 190 MW gas-generation facility. That makes it a very different scale of electricity customer from the data centres Saint John already has. Government of New Brunswick
New Brunswick is also developing a provincial policy framework for data centres, specifically addressing questions about community impacts, electricity demand, economic benefits and environmental considerations. Government of New Brunswick
Bottom line
Saint John has established data-centre operations today, but the major story is what may be coming.
If both major proposals proceed at their initially discussed scales, Saint John could potentially be dealing with 440+ MW of new data-centre electricity demand — 390 MW from Spruce Lake plus an initial 50 MW Cross River request. That does not mean 440 MW has been approved or will necessarily be built.
Saint John’s Data Centre Boom: How Much Electricity Could AI Really Use?
New Brunswick is facing a major new question: how much of the province’s electricity should be devoted to large-scale artificial intelligence data centres?
Saint John is at the centre of that debate.
Two major data-centre proposals are now associated with the city, including one enormous project at the Spruce Lake Industrial Park in the Lorneville area and a second potential project that initially seeks 50 megawatts of electricity.
The 390-MW Spruce Lake project
The largest proposal is being developed by Beacon New Brunswick Inc. and VoltaGrid LLC.
According to the New Brunswick government’s environmental-assessment records, the proposed project would include:
- A 390-megawatt data centre
- A 190-megawatt natural-gas-powered generation facility
- Two new 345-kV transmission lines
- Up to 200 MW from the NB Power grid
- Natural-gas pipelines connecting the generation facility to existing gas infrastructure
The project would be located at Spruce Lake Industrial Park in Saint John. The provincial environmental review remains underway.
How big is 390 MW?
It is difficult to appreciate the scale simply by looking at the number.
The project documents indicate that the facility could consume approximately 3.4 terawatt-hours of electricity annually when operating at full capacity.
That is an extraordinary amount of electricity for a single industrial project.
The proposed facility would obtain approximately 190 MW from its own natural-gas generation and another 200 MW from the provincial grid.
Now there is a second proposal
The Spruce Lake project is no longer the only potential data-centre development attracting attention in Saint John.
Documents obtained through an access-to-information request indicate that Cross River Infrastructure Partners, a U.S.-based infrastructure company, has been exploring a second Saint John data-centre project.
The initial request is for 50 MW of network-firm power, with the possibility of future expansion. The City of Saint John has confirmed receiving preliminary inquiries from the company but says it has no further updates at this time.
If the two projects were eventually developed at their initially proposed power levels, that would represent roughly 440 MW of data-centre-related electricity demand.
That does not mean 440 MW has been approved or that both projects will necessarily be built.
What does this mean for NB Power?
This is perhaps the most important question for ordinary New Brunswickers.
Large data centres operate around the clock and require enormous amounts of electricity not only for computer servers but also for cooling systems.
NB Power has said that large new customers must be integrated with the utility’s long-term supply planning. The utility has also indicated that large customers such as data centres could require flexible contractual arrangements designed to minimize pressure on the electrical grid and electricity rates.
That leaves several important questions:
Who pays for new transmission infrastructure?
Who pays if additional generation is required?
Will residential and small-business customers be protected from additional costs?
What electricity rates will large data centres receive?
How much electricity will actually be available during periods of peak demand?
These questions will be important as New Brunswick decides how aggressively it wants to pursue AI-related economic development.
Jobs and economic development
There is another side to the debate.
Large data centres can represent significant private investment and can create construction, engineering, technology, maintenance and other employment opportunities.
The provincial government is actively examining how data-centre development could benefit New Brunswick while addressing concerns about electricity, the environment and local communities.
The province opened a public consultation on a proposed data-centre policy framework in September 2026. The framework is intended to establish criteria for responsible development and consider economic, environmental and community interests.
Environmental concerns
The Spruce Lake proposal has also attracted criticism over emissions.
The environmental-impact work reported by The Courier estimated approximately 755,187 tonnes of direct CO₂ emissions per year at the project’s maximum operating scenario. The proposed natural-gas generation component is a major reason for the projected emissions.
The environmental review is therefore about much more than computers and electricity.
It involves questions about:
- Greenhouse-gas emissions
- Air quality
- Noise
- Natural-gas consumption
- Water and cooling requirements
- Transmission infrastructure
- Local land use
- Effects on nearby communities
What happens next?
The Spruce Lake AI Data Centre project is still moving through environmental and regulatory processes.
The federal Impact Assessment Agency of Canada says a request to designate the project under the federal Impact Assessment Act was received in August 2026 and that the assessment process is currently in progress.
Meanwhile, the Cross River proposal appears to be at a much earlier stage.
For Saint John, the larger issue may ultimately be bigger than either individual project.
The question is what kind of energy future New Brunswick wants.
Should the province use a significant share of its available electricity to attract energy-intensive AI and technology companies?
If so, how should those companies pay for the electricity and infrastructure they require?
And how can New Brunswick make sure that the economic benefits outweigh the costs to communities, the environment and electricity customers?
Those questions deserve public discussion before major commitments are made.
Saint John may be on the verge of becoming an important Atlantic Canadian centre for artificial intelligence infrastructure — but the price of that development remains one of the biggest questions.
Sources
- Government of New Brunswick — Environmental Assessment: Spruce Lake AI Data Centre Project
- Impact Assessment Agency of Canada — Spruce Lake AI Data Centre Project
- Global News — Second potential Saint John data centre, October 5, 2026
- Your Saint John — Cross River proposal
- Government of New Brunswick — Data Centre Development Policy Consultation
