Alberta approved a 932-megawatt gas plant solely dedicated to power Meta's first Canadian data center behind-the-meter.
Artificial intelligence data centers can consume enough electricity to reshape a regional energy market. In Alberta, Meta has taken an unusually direct approach: its first Canadian data center will receive dedicated power from a new 932-megawatt natural gas plant northeast of Edmonton.
On July 2, 2026, Pembina Pipeline, Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners, and Kineticor Asset Management approved the Greenlight Electricity Centre, a combined-cycle facility designed to generate electricity twice from the same fuel stream. Natural gas will power large turbines, and captured waste heat will produce steam for additional electricity—a more efficient design than allowing that heat to escape. The total project cost is approximately $3.24 billion, complementing Meta's separate 1-gigawatt campus investment of more than $9.1 billion.
Under a long-term tolling agreement, Greenlight will provide dedicated, behind-the-meter electricity to Meta, with service expected in the second half of 2030. This arrangement gives Meta a contracted power supply built around its campus rather than relying primarily on the existing public grid. The initial investment announcement did not identify the data center customer, but industry reports pointed to Meta. Six days later, Pembina and Meta confirmed the connection; Greenlight will power Meta's 33rd facility worldwide.
Meta describes the 1-gigawatt site as optimized for AI workloads and estimates it will support approximately 3,000 construction workers at peak, followed by more than 300 permanent operating jobs. The company plans roughly $42 million in local road and water infrastructure improvements. Its closed-loop liquid cooling system employs dry cooling technology, so the cooling infrastructure is not expected to consume water during operations.
Alberta offers several advantages for this project: abundant natural gas, available industrial land, cold winters that aid cooling efficiency, and a provincial government actively courting energy-intensive technology enterprises. Alberta has set a goal of attracting up to $70.5 billion in data center investment by 2030. The provincial strategy encourages large developers to bring or contract their own generation, which explains both Greenlight's design and Alberta's effort to connect technology companies with power suppliers. As Pembina CEO Scott Burrows stated, "We see ourselves building a business, not a project."
Greenlight is expected to consume approximately 150 million cubic feet of natural gas daily, or nearly 55 billion cubic feet annually at full operation. The partners have secured long-term producer commitments and transportation arrangements through systems operated by Pembina and TC Energy, representing a significant new customer for Alberta's gas sector. Pembina and Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners will each own 47.5 percent of Greenlight, with Kineticor holding 5 percent. The tolling contract provides capacity and usage-based payments, offering owners a more predictable revenue stream than a plant dependent entirely on wholesale power prices.
All major regulatory approvals are in place, and Pembina reports that approximately 85 percent of the capital cost is covered by fixed-price agreements. Construction is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2026 and conclude in 2030. The permitted site can eventually expand from 932 megawatts to 1,864 megawatts, with the additional capacity potentially supporting another data center or supplying the grid, depending on future demand.
Supporters argue this model protects the wider grid because Meta will pay the full cost of its energy use and fund new generation and infrastructure. Meta has pledged to add sufficient clean energy to Alberta's grid to match 100 percent of the data center's electricity consumption. However, this commitment does not alter operations at Greenlight itself, where natural gas will continue to provide the dedicated power supply.
Critics focus on emissions, gas prices, and the expanding presence of heavy industry in rural communities. The Pembina Institute estimates the plant could emit approximately 3.3 million U.S. tons of carbon dioxide annually and warns that increased gas demand could eventually affect household electricity rates. One nearby resident, who relocated from Edmonton to escape pollution, expressed concern that industry is following her westward.
Greenlight establishes a clear blueprint for attracting hyperscale AI investment to Alberta: pair a large data center with dedicated gas generation, keep most new demand off the existing grid, and convert local fuel into long-term contracted power. The approach appears straightforward on paper but proves far more complex in practice. As construction advances and other developers pursue similar arrangements, Alberta's success in becoming an AI infrastructure hub will ultimately depend on whether growth can be achieved without excessive increases to household costs and emissions.