01The economic argument
Do data centres pay Alberta back?
The case for
The case against
Billions in private investment
Meta is putting more than $13 billion into its Sturgeon County campus, and the province says not one public dollar went in.610
Money back to Albertans every year
The province counts about $250 million a year from this one project, in royalties, taxes, a levy and lower transmission fees.10
Thousands of construction jobs
More than 3,000 tradespeople at the peak of construction on Meta's campus alone.6
Most of the jobs are temporary
More than 3,000 at the peak of the build, about 300 once it's running. The gas plant beside it adds 30.656
The $250 million comes with no breakdown
The province's own figure, with no split by source and no published method.10
Power bills could rise first
The Pembina Institute estimates the average household could pay $267 to $462 more a year from 2027 to 2031.46
Where it stands: The money going in is real and private. What comes back is the province's own count, not an independent one, and an independent estimate says power bills may rise first. We have found no independent, published study that settles it.61046
02The Debate · Key Concerns, Both Sides
The technology is global. The impact is local.
Data centres power AI and promise investment and jobs. They also need land, electricity and water. What does that mean for your community, and who pays? Here are the eleven concerns, each side stated plainly, every claim cited.
Real riskIt dependsUnresolvedOpen questionOverblownColour grades how serious the finding is. It never marks a side. Tile images are illustrations.
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Where Alberta fits
Alberta in the data-centre picture
Alberta can connect a sliver of what has been requested.
The grid
The whole story, in one picture
Available, 1,200 MWRequested, 16 GWUp to 21 GWAlberta peak, for scale3
Rankings · top 5 of 65
Data Centre Suitability Ranking
- 1ManitobaCA80
- 2Newfoundland and LabradorCA73
- 3QuebecCA73
- 4TennesseeUS72
- 5WashingtonUS71
- 21AlbertaCA61
Project tracker
Every Alberta project we know of
Hover a county for its name
CommittedAnnouncedRejectedCounty or city with a projectHover or tap a dot for details. Site locations approximate; boundaries: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census
View all projects04A citizen’s checklist
What Alberta Should Ask For
23 questions to take to your council. Alberta already requires one of them, and part of 3 more.
Say this at the mic