A data center owned by a Canadian indigenous nations IT firm is being pitched in the Northwest Territories.

KatloTech Communications, an indigenous ICT services company in the Northwest Territories, is pitching IceFox Data Center, a hydro-powered modular data center campus on K'atlodeeche First Nation lands near Hay River, alongside a new fiber route.

The data center would total 20,500 sq ft (1,905 sqm) across several containerized buildings.

Phase I would see two 35kW data center pods (offering five racks each) for Edge computing and general workloads: Phase II would see a 100kW pod (hosting 13 racks) for AI, high-performance computing, and cloud hosting. Some company literature says the site could reportedly scale to 3MW over time; others say it could be expanded further to 20MW.

KatloTech Fiber, meanwhile, aims to develop 329 kilometers (204 miles) of underground fiber optic cable connecting High Level, Alberta to Hay River, Northwest Territories. Construction on the fiber route is due to start over the summer and go live in Q3 2027. The network would be offered on a wholesale basis.

KatloTech was founded in 2009. Mooted since at least 2020, Lyle Fabian, CEO of KatloTech, outlined plans for the IceFox project last year, calling it the basis for an “Indigenous AI platform.”

“Our snow-cell cooling system uses naturally stored winter snow and meltwater ponds to maintain chilled-loop cooling between 0–4°C (32–39°F) year-round, reducing power consumption and helping achieve near-zero emissions,” he said. The facility would be air-cooled.

In a Change.org petition started by Fabian to garner support for the project, he explained that the data center would be built on an old radar site on reserve lands – the former Nav Canada MOT (Ministry of Transport) radar facility. Fabian is Kátł’odeeche First Nation, and the site is on Kátł’odeeche land.

The petition said the project could break ground this year – with an original target date of May 2026 – and hopes to complete the first phase by December 2026. The project’s website, however, says it is launching in 2028.

Kátł’odeeche First Nation released a statement, reported by CKLRadio, saying: “Any proposed development — including the consideration of an AI data center — must be approached with care, responsibility and due diligence. Environmental protection, water resources, potential impacts on our lands, regulatory requirements, and the interests and concerns of our members must all be carefully considered before any decisions are made.”

Canadian firm Noramco, which distributes electrical and telecoms equipment, has invested in KaltoTech.