Canadian telecommunications provider Telus Corp. (TU) said it plans to spend $65 million building out a data center in northern Quebec designed to enhance its IT management services business.
Telus said the Rimouski-based “tier three intelligent Internet data center” will be the cornerstone of the company’s “strategic shift in support of next-generation cloud computing and unified communications solutions.”
Construction of the data center is set to begin in the next few weeks with the opening scheduled for 2012. Telus said the facility will be directly connected to its national IP network and interconnect into existing data centers across the country.
Telus said it selected Rimouski for the data center based on the community’s “highly skilled and dynamic workforce,” and that the location would allow the company to benefit from one of Quebec’s vast hydroelectric power infrastructure. In addition, Telus cited the location’s moderate climate contributing to lower energy requirements for the building’s cooling and heating systems and the location’s distance from large city centers providing “greater geographic diversity and improved business continuity.”
Along with nationwide rivals Rogers Wireless and Bell Canada, Telus’ mobile operations continue to dominate the Canadian landscape. The company recently announced plans to begin rolling out LTE services next year, and re-introduced the Clearnet brand into several markets in an attempt to counter new, lower-cost entrants.
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