CALGARY — The CEO of Capital Power says Meta’s planned $13-billion data centre has reinforced Alberta’s appeal to global technology companies, which could see the UCP government’s AI strategy as a vote of confidence.Avik Dey told Reuters that his Edmonton-based power producer is already in discussions with several companies about supplying electricity to potential projects as Alberta looks to become a world leader in AI technology infrastructure.While Dey did not identify the companies involved in the talks, he said he didn’t expect Meta to be the only American hyperscaler — a company that operates massive cloud-computing and data centre infrastructure to support AI — to establish a large-scale facility in Alberta.“Meta is the first to cross the line, but I think multiple hyperscalers have been evaluating Alberta for, I would say, the last 18 months,” he said.“I do feel strongly that we’ve got the potential to be a multi-gigawatt market.”Meta has partnered with Pembina Pipeline to develop a natural gas-fired generating station for its first Canadian data centre, planned for Sturgeon County.However, until that power facility enters service in 2030, Capital Power is expected to provide 250 megawatts of electricity to the site..Meta making over $10B AI data centre investment in Alberta.Currently, Canada has only a handful of hyperscale data centres, but more than 100 projects have reportedly been proposed in Alberta.Data centre supporters say Alberta offers abundant natural gas, available land and a cold climate that can reduce the costs of cooling large computing facilities.The Genesee Generating Station, located southwest of Edmonton, is currently being pitched by Capital Power as a potential location for major data centres.The Meta project has already given Alberta a high-profile win as Premier Danielle Smith attempts to attract as much as $200 billion in data-centre development.The province’s strategy allows private-sector proponents to build their own electricity generation to increase available capacity without placing the full burden on Alberta’s power grid.Dey believes that approach could help Alberta avoid some of the resistance facing the construction of data centres in the US, where communities and lawmakers have raised concerns about data centres’ electricity use, water consumption and environmental effects..'Let’s stop the dramatics:' Smith's chief of staff claims Meta's $13B investment debunks claims of referendum scaring away businesses.However, similar opposition is already developing in Alberta.In August, the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) rejected an application to build a 1.4-gigawatt power plant for a proposed data centre near Olds.In its ruling, the AUC found there was insufficient justification for locating the facility roughly 800 metres from approximately 700 homes.At the time, Smith said the controversy demonstrated that poorly planned projects could create opposition to the entire industry going forward.“Now we’ve created a bunch of advocates who want to stop every single AI data supply project, and I don’t think that that’s what Albertans want, and I don’t think that that’s what’s good for our province,” Smith said, adding that Albertans’ concerns about AI expansion must be addressed and eased.“I think if we can address those real concerns, legitimate concerns, acknowledge that they're legitimate, have the proper siting decisions. My minister set a target of 200 billion dollars to be able to attract, and Meta doing $13 billion, we're on our way,” she stated.Despite that resistance, Dey’s comments suggest major technology companies remain interested in Alberta and Western Canada.Last week, Canadian telecom firm BCE announced plans to quadruple the size and scope of its planned data centre in Saskatchewan, transforming it into a 1.2-gigawatt hub.
