BC Curbs AI Energy Use, Permanently Bans Crypto Mining

The British Columbia government unveiled new energy policy changes aimed at curbing electricity use from artificial intelligence data centers while permanently banning new cryptocurrency mining projects.

Tabled by Energy Minister Adrian Dix, the proposed legislation will replace the province’s traditional first-come, first-served grid connection policy with a competitive bidding system for emerging industries such as AI, data centers, and hydrogen-for-export projects.

Under the new framework, these sectors will be limited to a combined 400 megawatts of new power allocation every two years: 300 megawatts for AI operations and 100 megawatts for other data centers.

Dix said the move was designed to prevent British Columbia from falling into the same trap as regions in the United States where explosive growth in data center demand has strained power grids and driven up electricity costs for residents.

“The allocation framework allows for the paced growth of these sectors and avoids mistakes we’ve seen in other jurisdictions where growth has outpaced infrastructure, resulting in higher costs for everyday residential customers,” Dix told reporters in Victoria.

“We won’t make that mistake. We will prioritize the projects that provide the best, greatest benefit to British Columbians.”

The province’s publicly owned utility, BC Hydro, will oversee the competitive call process beginning in early 2026.

According to the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation, British Columbia has been inundated with requests from data-heavy industries seeking grid access, particularly as AI development accelerates worldwide.

By contrast, power allocations for resource-based industries such as mining, oil and gas, forestry, and hydrogen production will remain uncapped due to their higher employment and revenue contributions to the province.

“Other jurisdictions have been challenged to address electricity demands from emerging sectors and, in many cases, have placed significant rate increases on the backs of ratepayers,” the ministry said in a statement.

The new rules also formalize a decision that has been years in the making. A temporary moratorium on new cryptocurrency mining projects, which was first imposed in 2022 and extended in 2024, will now become permanent.

The government cited crypto mining’s “disproportionate energy consumption and limited economic benefit” as justification for the ban. Unlike AI or manufacturing, officials noted that crypto mining generates little employment while consuming large amounts of power.

The policy stands in sharp contrast to neighboring Alberta, which has embraced data infrastructure investment and is targeting C$100 billion in new data center spending over the next five years.

Alberta’s government has promoted its abundant natural gas reserves as a key energy source for such projects, offering a market-friendly alternative to British Columbia’s more cautious stance.

In a related move, the province announced plans to fast-track the construction of the North Coast Transmission Line, a massive infrastructure project aimed at unlocking new mining and industrial development in northern British Columbia.

The government will exempt the project from a regulatory certification process that normally requires public hearings before the BC Utilities Commission, cutting as much as 18 months from its development timeline.

The 450-kilometre line, which will initially connect Prince George to Terrace, carries a price tag now estimated at C$6 billion, which is double the previous year’s estimate of C$3 billion.

Once complete, officials say it will supply high-voltage electricity to a region rich in mineral resources but long constrained by limited power access. Government projections estimate that the project could create about 9,700 full-time jobs and contribute nearly US$10 billion per year to the province’s GDP.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.