Artificial intelligence companies propose natural gas-powered data centre for rural property south of Winnipeg
CBC
A pair of artificial intelligence companies plan to build a data centre south of Winnipeg powered by natural gas turbines.
In a series of communications to potential investors over the past month, Las Vegas-based Jet.AI and Vancouver’s Consensus Core announced plans to build an AI data centre on a 141-hectare (350-acre) parcel of land north of Île-des-Chênes, in the R.M. of Ritchot.
A natural gas-fired power generation plant with as many as six turbines would be built on the same Ritchot campus, the companies said in their communications.
The companies did not disclose a dollar value for the proposed investment but suggested it would be significant.
“If approved, this development proposal would deliver a business and technology win for Manitoba,” Consensus Core CEO Wayne Lloyd said in a statement issued Friday.
“The Ile-des-Chênes project would create a made-in-Manitoba world-class data centre, create new, well-paying jobs, and also add new local electricity generation to the provincial grid, reducing Manitoba’s reliance on imported power.
“We look forward to continuing to work with government officials as well as engaging the local community to bring this project to reality.”
Consensus Core bills itself as a provider of “high performance GPU infrastructure for AI,” which means it allows clients to access graphics processors over the Internet. Jet.AI is an aviation software company that has diversified into artificial intelligence.
In a document published on its website, Jet.AI states that it has reached an agreement to purchase the land north of Île-des-Chênes, which was once slated to serve as the home of a cryptocurrency operation owned by a company called Blockharvest Inc.
Jet.AI said the Ritchot land sits at a “unique confluence of abundant hydroelectric power and significant natural gas capacity, making it an ideal site for data center development.”
Consensus Core said in a statement the project is in a preliminary stage.
Ritchot Mayor Chris Ewen said the companies have made some early inquiries to the rural municipality but have not many any proposals of any sort.
Manitoba Hydro is not aware of the project and cannot comment, communications director Scott Powell said.
A spokesperson for Adrien Sala, the minister responsible for Hydro, said there are no requests to connect an AI data centre in Ritchot to Manitoba’s power grid.
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A pair of artificial intelligence companies plan to build a data centre south of Winnipeg powered by natural gas turbines.