Trinidad and Tobago signed memorandums of understanding with Hummingbird AI Holdings and Ernst and Young LLP on Friday. The agreements mark the first data center partnerships signed by any Caribbean country, according to a statement from the office of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

The agreement with Ernst and Young LLP establishes a framework for collaboration on developing large-scale data centers. Ernst and Young LLP, headquartered in New York, plans to partner with third parties to develop a 300 megawatt data center, which has an electrical power capacity of 300 million watts at peak load. The agreement with Hummingbird AI Holdings, a Florida-based company, creates a framework for preliminary cooperation, due diligence, and coordination for a proposed 150 MW AI infrastructure and data center facility.

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the new partnerships are part of a broader economic strategy. "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," Persad-Bissessar said. Her office added that the U.S. government played a role in facilitating the parties involved in the agreements.

Criticism of the initiative has emerged from civil society. Social activist Wayne Kublalsingh said the projects do not represent genuine progress. "The government is trying to present something which looks like development, but which is not development," Kublalsingh said.

The planned data centers come amid infrastructure challenges in Trinidad and Tobago. The country has a history of chronic water shortages and intermittent supply, with most homes relying on water tanks because tap water can arrive as infrequently as once a week. Some communities have gone weeks without water from the state utility, which sets supply schedules for the majority of the population. While electricity supply has improved over the years and power outages are now rare in most areas, global projections suggest data centers could account for nearly 3% of the world’s electricity use by 2030, totaling 935 trillion watt-hours, according to a United Nations University report.

Why It Matters

Trinidad and Tobago’s agreements represent a strategic pivot toward digital infrastructure in a region that has not previously pursued large-scale data center development. The projects signal an effort to attract foreign investment in high-capacity technology sectors, even as the country contends with longstanding water access issues that affect daily life for many residents. The involvement of U.S.-facilitated partnerships and multinational firms underscores the growing geopolitical and economic interest in positioning Caribbean nations within global data ecosystems.