Nova Scotia
IESO Nova Scotia (Independent Energy System Operator); Nova Scotia Power owns and operates the transmission and distribution system; Nova Scotia Energy Board regulates
Route to power. Utility large-load process. There is no data centre framework, queue or rate. On 23 September 2026 the Premier said data centres that meet the province’s conditions will be heard out.
How you connect
Nova Scotia Power has a written process for large loads, its Bulk Power Facilities Connection Guide. One of its engineers decides whether a load connects at distribution or transmission voltage, and the guide sets no study times. The system operator, IESO Nova Scotia, runs the large-load studies.
Nine large-load studies for commercial and industrial projects, about 855 MW in total, are in progress, according to the operator’s 2026 ten-year outlook. The projects are not named.
Scale
The province set a record peak of 2,481 MW in January 2026. A 100 MW data centre would be about 4% of that, and the largest request in the studies, 325 MW, about 13%.
Politics
In June 2026 the Premier said the province was not pursuing data centres and would back one only if it could fully supply the power without risk to Nova Scotians. By September he had softened that.
Your own power and cost
Rules exist for small generation and net metering, but nothing yet sets out how a large load would supply its own power. There is no data centre rate; large customers fall under the industrial rates.
What has happened
Updated 2026-10-13.