PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) — Trinidad and Tobago has entered into formal agreements with American companies that will open the door for large-scale data centers to be built in the Caribbean nation, drawing both excitement and concern over the potential strain on the country’s energy and water resources.
The memorandums of understanding were signed on Friday with Florida-based Hummingbird AI Holdings and New York-based Ernst and Young LLP, according to a statement released by the office of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar. Officials noted these are the first agreements of this kind signed with any Caribbean country.
The agreement with Ernst and Young LLP establishes a framework for building large-scale data centers, with the company intending to “partner with third parties in the development” of a facility with a 300 megawatt capacity, the statement indicated.
Meanwhile, the deal with Hummingbird AI Holdings creates a structure for “preliminary cooperation, due diligence and coordination” toward a proposed 150 MW artificial intelligence infrastructure and data center project.
A megawatt rating for a data center reflects its electrical power capacity when running at full load. The 300 MW facility, for reference, would consume 300 million watts of electricity at peak operation.
The announcements quickly sparked online debate about the environmental consequences of building such large facilities in the twin-island nation.
Prominent social activist Dr. Wayne Kublalsingh expressed his concerns directly to The Associated Press, questioning the energy demands the planned centers would place on the country. He argued the government is “trying to present something which looks like development, but which is not development.”
Adding to those concerns is Trinidad and Tobago’s long-standing struggle with water access. The country has dealt with chronic shortages and unreliable water delivery for years, and critics worry that water-intensive data centers could make an already strained system even worse. The state utility company operates on a water schedule, and many households rely on personal storage tanks since tap water may only flow once a week. In some communities, residents have gone weeks without any water service from the state provider.
A recent United Nations University report found that data centers worldwide could account for nearly 3% of global electricity consumption by 2030, representing approximately 935 trillion watt-hours. The report also noted that the environmental footprint of data centers already rivals that of some of the world’s largest nations.
On the electricity side, Trinidad and Tobago has seen improvements in recent years, with power outages becoming relatively infrequent, though they do still occur in certain areas.
A third agreement was also signed Friday, this one with American firm Pinnacle Steel and Vanadium Corporation, which recently took ownership of a local iron and steel plant. Government representatives said the deal opens the door for further discussions about restarting operations at the facility.
Taken together, officials said the three agreements are projected to generate more than 5,000 jobs combined.
Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar, who has been a vocal supporter of the Trump administration, noted that the U.S. government helped bring the parties together. Speaking Friday evening at an independence anniversary celebration hosted by the U.S. Embassy in Trinidad and Tobago, she described the deals plainly: “They’re going to invest here to work on data centers, two for data centers, and one to help us rejuvenate and rebuild our steel industry.”
