Canadian telco Bell has started work on a new data center in Kamloops, British Columbia.

The Thompson Rivers University Community Trust (TRU) this week announced that construction has officially begun on a new data center at 1452 McGill Road, which will form part of Bell’s AI Fabric network.

The data center is anticipated to be completed in late 2027.

“This project reflects the kind of collaboration needed to strengthen Canada’s AI ecosystem. By expanding domestic computing capacity through, we’re helping ensure Canadian organizations can build and deploy AI with confidence, security, and performance,” said Dan Rink, president, Bell AI Fabric.

Utilizing a closed-loop cooling system, the facility is set to make its waste heat available for a planned district heating system. TrueNorth Sustainable Infrastructure Inc. is the lead developer on the project.

“The partnership between Bell AI Fabric and Thompson Rivers University is advancing Canada’s sovereign AI infrastructure. TRU is thrilled to combine our world-class standing in environmental sustainability with the vision and actions of Bell AI Fabric to achieve exceptional AI network capabilities,” added Thompson Rivers University president and vice-chancellor, Dr. Airini.

Founded in 1970, Thompson Rivers University is a public research university located in Kamloops, British Columbia.

The site is close to an Equinix data center that the colocation firm acquired from Bell in 2020 as part of a larger portfolio purchase.

TRU reportedly bought the McGill Road property in 2018. The site had previously been earmarked for a mixed-use housing and commercial space, but the development seemingly never got off the ground. The land has also hosted a bronze bull sculpture, known as Obilix, from Canadian artist Joe Farad.

Work on TRU’s Low-Carbon District Energy System started in 2024, and is due to launch later this year.

Bell announced plans for a series of new AI data centers last year, including a number in Kamloops.

The telco planned to launch a 7MW facility alongside AI chip firm Groq, as well as two 26MW facilities in partnership with Thompson Rivers. Details are yet to be shared on the second facility, but previous reports suggest it will be a larger building located more centrally on campus.

Bell also has an Edge data center business in the US through its recent acquisition of Ziply Fiber.

Most of Canada’s data centers are clustered around Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver – alongside growing interest across Alberta. Canadian telco Telus and hosting firm SilverServers also have a presence in Kamloops.