Pension Pulse

Monte Steward of Connect Canada CRE reports  La Caisse Invests $240M in Cologix’s MTL 8 Data Centre: La Caisse has provided $240 million in senior financing for Cologix’s MTL8 colocation data centre in Montreal. The global investment group announced the financing agreement with Cologix, a North American network-neutral interconnection and hyperscale edge data-centre company. Construction of the facility’s structure and building envelope has been completed, and the AI-ready data centre is now in service. La Caisse supplied the entire debt financing to support Cologix’s continued investment in the site. Located in Technoparc Montréal near Montreal–Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, the MTL8 facility will deliver 21 megawatts of capacity and is powered by hydroelectricity. The site integrates with Cologix’s interconnection network across its 11 other Montreal facilities. In 2025, the MTL8 data centre achieved LEED Gold certification, confirming its sus...

James Bradshaw of the Globe and Mail reports  CAAT CEO Derek Dobson resigns, agrees to repay $1.6-million vacation payout: The CAAT Pension Plan is parting ways with chief executive officer Derek Dobson, who has agreed to repay a controversial $1.6-million vacation payout he received last year as he ends his nearly 17-year tenure at the helm of the plan. CAAT said in a statement on Friday that “Mr. Dobson has tendered his resignation and will leave CAAT effective immediately” as part of a settlement agreement that “brings closure to his employment at the plan.” Mr. Dobson was placed on administrative leave last month after concerns about his leadership and the board’s oversight of his actions caused upheaval in the senior ranks of the $23-billion fund, ultimately leading to a governance crisis that has prompted an overhaul of the plan’s management. The terms of the settlement agreement were not disclosed. “Both Mr. Dobson and the CAAT board of trustees acknowledge the ...

Bryan McGovern of Benefits Canada reports  Canada’s largest pension funds joining Australian peers to increase investments in both countries: Canada’s largest pension funds are joining an initiative that aims to boost pension investments between Canada and Australia. The Canadian-Australian Pension Funds Investment Initiative, announced Wednesday during Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to Australia, will create a framework for pension funds in the two countries to discuss policy barriers and associated solutions to improve the current business environment. The agreement includes participation from the Alberta Investment Management Corp., the British Columbia Investment Management Corp., the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, CPP Investments, the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan, the Investment Management Corp. of Ontario, the Ontario Municipal Employees’ Retirement System, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board. The part...

Tyler Choi of Sustainable Biz reports  Brookfield, BCI, Norges to launch Northview Energy: Brookfield Asset Management, British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI) and the manager of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund have joined forces to create a renewables company named Northview Energy, which could acquire over $1 billion of assets (all figures US unless otherwise noted) in future deals. Scheduled to launch in Q2 and valued at approximately $2.6 billion , Northview is described as a private firm that will acquire and own a diversified portfolio of contracted, operating renewable assets in the U.S. and Canada. Northview is expected to acquire a seed portfolio of assets from companies managed by Brookfield, such as U.S. companies Deriva Energy and Scout Clean Energy . The seed portfolio, Brookfield said in a release, is to comprise 22 contracted utility-scale solar and onshore wind installations in markets “experiencing strong energy demand growth across ...

Canadian Property Management reports  CPP Investments inks Nordic data centre deal: Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) is furthering its collaboration with the global digital infrastructure company, Equinix, through joint acquisition of the atNorth data centre portfolio, stretching across five Nordic nations. CPP Investments will contribute roughly USD $1.6 billion to secure a 60 per cent controlling interest in atNorth, which encompasses eight operational data centres and three high-density colocation facilities now in development. “The Nordics are an attractive market for data centre growth and the opportunity to partner with Equinix on this acquisition allows us to deploy capital at scale into a high-quality platform,” says Maximilian Biagosch, senior managing director and global head of real assets with CPP Investments. The two investors are already part of a three-way partnership with the sovereign wealth fund, GIC, focused on develop...