Microsoft has announced that it is investing $500 million USD (around $688 million CAD) into Quebec’s digital footprint and infrastructure. The investment will go towards expanding Microsoft’s “hyperscale cloud computing and AI infrastructure” over the next two years.
The announcement of this investment follows the Ernst & Young report, which claims Microsoft’s presence in Quebec supports 57,000 jobs and contributes more than $6.4 billion to the province’s annual GDP. Microsoft and its ecosystem in Quebec also includes over 3,200 partners and cloud infrastructure accounts.
The latest investment will go towards expanding Quebec’s computing capacity by around 240 percent in the next three years. Microsoft is also geared to “accelerate the pace of AI innovation” in the hopes of building on “the significant capacity already in place across the province.” This includes an existing datacentre region, which launched in 2016.
Microsoft’s investment aims to support future datacentre locations, which are expected to start construction “in the coming months.” In the pipeline, Quebec will see the construction of newly built datacentres in L’Ancienne-Lorette, Donnacona, Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, and Lévis. Both locations will help meet company goals of being carbon-negative, water-positive, and zero waste by 2030.
“This is excellent news for our economy, both in terms of its impact and to attract new investment to our region,” says Carl Viel, President and CEO of Québec Internationa. “The fact that an innovative global company like Microsoft has chosen Quebec for a project of this magnitude demonstrates the quality of foreign investments we are able to attract. It also secures our position in future-forward fields such as cybersecurity and artificial intelligence.”
Microsoft is also said to be working with industry leaders in the province to assist in a series of initiatives to help people learn the skills required to be successful in the digital economy. This is being done in an effort to future-proof Quebec’s economy and create new opportunities for residents.
Microsoft is also collaborating with KPMG Canada and NPower Canada to further assist in cybersecurity protections and career development initiatives. Working with KPMG Canada, Microsoft helped launch the Operational Risk Skills Development Centre, which offers hands-on French-first training to businesses and governments for free. In conjunction with NPower Canada, the Canadian Tech Talent Accelerator in Quebec will help provide digital training.
