Meta officially announces Canada's first 1GW data center with investment exceeding $13 billion
Meta has announced plans to construct a one-gigawatt data centre northeast of Edmonton, marking the company’s first such facility in Canada. In a news release issued Wednesday, the social media giant behind platforms including Facebook and Instagram confirmed it will invest more than $13 billion in the project, located in Sturgeon County. The company also pledged $60 million toward local infrastructure improvements.
The facility will utilize a closed-loop, liquid-cooled system featuring “dry cooling” to eliminate operational water consumption. Gary Demasi, Meta’s vice-president of data centre strategy and development, emphasized the minimal water footprint at a Calgary news conference attended by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Sturgeon County Mayor Alanna Hnatiw. “To put that into perspective, our annual water use is actually less than a typical Alberta golf course,” Demasi said. He added that Meta aims to be water-positive by 2030, meaning the company will restore more water to local watersheds than it consumes.
Power for the data centre will be drawn from the provincial grid alongside electricity generated on-site by natural gas. The site, situated within the Alberta Industrial Heartland, will also host Project Greenlight, a proposed natural gas-powered electricity generation facility. While Meta did not provide a specific launch date, Demasi noted operations will begin “in the next few years.” The Sturgeon County site will serve as Meta’s 33rd global data centre.
The project is expected to create 3,000 jobs during construction and 300 permanent positions once operational. Premier Smith highlighted the economic benefits, stating the facility would generate at least $250 million annually for Alberta. She credited the province’s cool climate, skilled workforce, and growing artificial intelligence expertise for attracting industry interest. “We believe our province can compete with any jurisdiction on Earth and what we have to offer,” Smith said. “Alberta is well on the way to becoming a central player at the heart of the AI revolution.”
Industry experts and critics have offered mixed perspectives on the development. Mark Daley, chief AI officer at Western University in London, Ontario, described data centres as major economic engines of the 21st century. He noted that Canada’s abundant energy resources make it a logical location, calling Meta’s investment the “jewel in the crown” for any provincial strategy. “You have one of the world's largest technology corporations saying, 'I have full faith and confidence that what I need can be delivered in this environment,'” Daley said. “Certainly that's going to be noticed by everyone else who is that scale and below, and will probably lead to more opportunities.” Conversely, David Pickup, director of the Pembina Institute’s electricity program, warned that Alberta’s policy of allowing independent power generation sidelines cheaper, low-carbon alternatives. He cautioned that combined with rising liquefied natural gas exports, data centre demand could increase consumer electricity prices. “It's going to have an impact on Albertans and that's something we're really concerned about,” Pickup said.
Alberta’s approach follows legislation passed last fall that permits data centres to generate their own power. Alberta Technology and Innovation Minister Nate Glubish defended the province’s strategy, asserting that regulators worked to avoid pitfalls observed in the United States. “Alberta is doing it differently,” Glubish said. “We took the time to get the regulatory framework right. It's a fair, reasonable and competitive framework. Everyone's going to follow the same rules.” He added that any company violating these regulations will be held accountable.