The construction, implementation, management and operation of data centres has evolved into a standalone industry in Canada that is experiencing rapid growth, driven by increasing demand for AI, cloud services, big data analytics, and digital transformation across various sectors, access to clean energy resources, combined with the introduction of public and private funding opportunities. Regulations and commercial considerations applicable to the development and operation of data centres can vary significantly across Canadian provinces, with each province’s unique landscape influencing the operational and strategic decisions of data centre operators and users.
Osler’s expertise
Osler’s team of data centre experts provides comprehensive guidance to both domestic and international participants, including owners, operators, technology suppliers, investors, and customers. Our lawyers specialize in a broad spectrum of data centre-related advice and transactions, with data centre-specific expertise and experience and related to government funding, permitting and approvals, joint ventures, acquisitions and sales, equipment supply, utility agreements, commercial contracts, intellectual property, privacy and data management, construction, financing and leasing.
Comprehensive service, regulatory expertise, and technical insight
Data centre projects are multi-faceted and complex. Osler’s one-firm approach is perfectly suited to these projects ensuring a high degree of collaboration among our multidisciplinary teams. For our clients, this means access to the collective knowledge of our experts in Technology, Project Finance, Mergers and Acquisitions, Energy Regulatory, Infrastructure, Real Estate, Tax, Intellectual Property, and Privacy & Data Governance.
We are well-equipped to address the multifaceted demands of our data centre clientele throughout Canada, delivering solutions that are both innovative and cost-effective.
Key Contacts
Partner, Technology, Toronto
Partner, Technology, Toronto
Partner, Financial Services, Toronto
Partner, Commercial, Toronto, Montréal
Partner, Real Estate, Montréal
Representative Work
Osler has advised numerous data centre industry participants on a vast array of mandates, including:
- Acting for a global technology conglomerate in connection with the development of data centres in Québec and Ontario, including electricity infrastructure development, regulatory licensing, power purchase arrangements, and integration of energy efficiency initiatives.
- Acting for a data centre firm on the development of a large-scale facility/data centre campus totalling 1.2GW in Alberta, Canada.
- Acting for a developer on the strategy and structuring of a planned series of international data centres located in strategic countries.
- Acting for a prominent Quebec utility in its co-investment in a leading global provider of hyperscale data centre campuses.
- Advising a major Alberta power generator on permitting issues for data centres.
- Acting for a major Canadian retailer in connection with the outsourcing of its data centre management functions and the modernization of its legacy data centre infrastructure.
- Acting for a Schedule 1 Canadian bank on construction and retrofit projects for their Toronto-based data centres, office towers, and major capital facilities.
- Acting for a Schedule 1 Canadian bank in connection with the build-out of in-house data centres and repatriation and transition of its outsourced data centres to the new in-house data centres.
- Acting for a major real estate investment and property management entity in its acquisition of a portfolio of data centres from a leading bank (involving 10 data centres across Canada), as well as the subsequent leaseback and securitization of the portfolio.
- Advising an infrastructure investment firm on its acquisition of a 100% equity interest in a public-private partnership data centre joint venture, assuming responsibility for a government-affiliated enterprise data centre.
- Acting for a data centre business in the negotiation of its agreement with a leading service provider for on-demand cloud computing platforms and APIs.
- Advising data centre developers and users on the application of Canadian laws to AI training and inferencing activities at data centres in Canada.
- Acting for a construction services and capital investment firm on the rehabilitation project of a government taxation data centre complex.
Osler’s extensive experience and comprehensive service offerings make us a trusted partner for navigating the complexities of the data centre industry in Canada.
