Trinidad and Tobago Signs MoUs for AI Data Centers, Raising Questions on Resource Capacity

The Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago has signed non-binding Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with two American companies to develop AI-focused data centers, a move that has sparked debate over whether the country possesses the energy and water resources to support such large-scale projects. The agreements come as small island nations increasingly explore opportunities in the high-performance computing sector, though questions remain about their readiness to host energy-intensive AI infrastructure.

Under the MoUs, professional services firm Ernst & Young will lead the development of a 300MW data center, while Hummingbird AI Holdings — a company with limited public presence — is tasked with building a 150MW facility. According to a press release from the United National Congress, the party of Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar, the Hummingbird campus is targeted for operation by the first quarter of 2028 and could be expanded to 500MW. Combined, the two projects could demand up to 800MW of electricity, roughly one-third of Trinidad and Tobago’s total generation capacity of approximately 2.4GW, according to the country’s Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries.

The scale of these plans has drawn scrutiny given the nation’s existing infrastructure. Data Center Map lists only five non-AI data centers currently operating in Trinidad and Tobago. Additionally, the country has faced recurring water shortages over the past year due to pipe infrastructure issues, raising concerns about the ability to support water-intensive cooling systems typically required by large data centers.

Questions have also been raised about the suitability of the project partners. Hummingbird AI Holdings is led by Marc-Kwesi Farrel, a non-executive director at Trinidad and Tobago-based conglomerate Massy Holdings, which operates in retail, energy, and automotive sectors. Farrel is also the founder of Caribbean rum brand Ten To One Rum, a former vice president at Starbucks, and has worked at private equity firm Bain, a Caribbean media company, and a social media app for fans of athletes. It remains unclear whether he has any prior experience in the data center industry.

In a separate development, the government signed an MoU with Pinnacle Steel and Vanadium Corporation, which has acquired an iron and steel plant at Point Lisas, a key industrial hub. The agreement could see the company refurbish and operate the plant for vanadium production. The government has stated that all three projects combined represent an investment of approximately $5 billion.