Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, will invest over $9.1 billion (€8 billion) to construct its first artificial intelligence (AI) data center in Canada.
The facility, which will be Meta’s largest data center outside the United States, will be built in Sturgeon County in the province of Alberta. To power the facility, a consortium including Calgary-based Pembina Pipeline, Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners, and Kineticor Asset Management will construct a dedicated 932-megawatt natural gas power plant.
The power station is scheduled to become operational in the second half of 2030.
Nate Glubish, Alberta’s Minister of Technology and Innovation, called the project “a huge step forward for Alberta,” emphasizing that the province has deliberately created a regulatory framework to attract major data center investments.
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The rapid global expansion of AI infrastructure has sparked widespread environmental concerns regarding the massive electricity and water consumption required to run large-scale facilities. Because Alberta’s local power grid cannot support multiple massive data centers, provincial authorities are prioritizing projects that generate their own electricity, as Meta plans to do.
To address environmental and community impacts, Meta highlighted several design and infrastructure features for the new site:
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Water conservation: The data center will utilize a closed-loop cooling system, meaning it will run without drawing from local community water sources.
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Community investment: Meta will invest $42 million into local Sturgeon County infrastructure, including upgrading area roads and water supply systems.
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Economic boost: The construction phase of the project is expected to employ more than 3,000 construction workers, and Meta has committed to providing funding for regional non-profit organizations.
The Alberta development will mark Meta’s 33rd data center globally. The massive investment represents the tech giant’s latest aggressive push to rapidly scale its infrastructure capabilities to meet the soaring demand for AI services while competing against rival tech conglomerates like Alphabet, Microsoft, and Amazon.
