Data centres lead to a surge in Ottawa grid requests (opens original article in a new tab)

Data centres are driving a surge in grid connection requests in Ottawa, with 60% of projects in the queue coming from this sector, according to Hydro Ottawa's CEO. The utility faces unprecedented pressure as large-scale projects could exceed the city's total power consumption by year-end. Ontario's grid is also seeing a 70% increase in data centre demands over two months.

• About 60% of Ottawa's grid connection requests come from data centres
• Hydro Ottawa expects large-scale projects to exceed the city's total power use by year-end
• Data centre demands on Ontario's grid rose 70% in two months
• Public institutions account for 17% of connection requests