Data Centre Facts, Alberta's AI Data-Centre Boom

#	Locality	Score
1	🇨🇦 Manitoba province	80
2	🇨🇦 Newfoundland and Labrador province	73
3	🇨🇦 Quebec province	73
4	🇺🇸 Tennessee state	72
5	🇺🇸 Washington state	71
6	🇺🇸 North Carolina state	70
7	🇺🇸 Georgia state	69
8	🇺🇸 Alabama state	68
9	🇨🇦 British Columbia province	68
10	🇺🇸 Iowa state	67
11	🇺🇸 South Carolina state	66
12	🇨🇦 Ontario province	66
13	🇺🇸 Minnesota state	65
14	🇨🇦 New Brunswick province	64
15	🇺🇸 Wisconsin state	63
16	🇺🇸 Kentucky state	63
17	🇺🇸 Idaho state	63
18	🇺🇸 Missouri state	62
19	🇺🇸 Oregon state	62
20	🇨🇦 Saskatchewan province	62
21	🇨🇦 Alberta province	61
22	🇺🇸 Michigan state	61
23	🇺🇸 Florida state	61
24	🇺🇸 Montana state	61
25	🇺🇸 Wyoming state	61
26	🇺🇸 Pennsylvania state	59
27	🇺🇸 Indiana state	59
28	🇺🇸 Ohio state	59
29	🇺🇸 South Dakota state	59
30	🇺🇸 Mississippi state	59
31	🇺🇸 Arkansas state	59
32	🇺🇸 New Mexico state	59
33	🇺🇸 Illinois state	58
34	🇺🇸 North Dakota state	58
35	🇺🇸 Louisiana state	58
36	🇺🇸 Nebraska state	57
37	🇺🇸 Vermont state	56
38	🇺🇸 Kansas state	56
39	🇺🇸 Oklahoma state	56
40	🇺🇸 Arizona state	56
41	🇨🇦 Nova Scotia province	56
42	🇺🇸 Virginia state	55
43	🇺🇸 Maine state	55
44	🇺🇸 New York state	54
45	🇺🇸 West Virginia state	54
46	🇨🇦 Prince Edward Island province	54
47	🇺🇸 Texas state	53
48	🇺🇸 New Hampshire state	53
49	🇺🇸 Utah state	53
50	🇺🇸 Colorado state	52
51	🇺🇸 Nevada state	52
52	🇺🇸 Connecticut state	51
53	🇺🇸 Maryland state	51
54	🇨🇦 Yukon territory	49
55	🇺🇸 Massachusetts state	47
56	🇨🇦 Northwest Territories territory	47
57	🇮🇪 Ireland country	43
58	🇺🇸 New Jersey state	43
59	🇺🇸 Rhode Island state	42
60	🇺🇸 Delaware state	42
61	🇺🇸 District of Columbia district	39
62	🇺🇸 Alaska state	38
63	🇺🇸 California state	37
64	🇨🇦 Nunavut territory	32
65	🇺🇸 Hawaii state	23

Comparing 4 , tick up to 5 above. Open “Adjust weights” to re-weight.

Factor	🇨🇦 Alberta	🇺🇸 Virginia	🇺🇸 Texas	🇮🇪 Ireland
Power availability & time-to-power 18% weight	251,200 MW cap, fully allocated; ~19.6 GW queued	25PJM queue ~70 GW; NoVA large-AI energization ~4–7 yr; Dominion ~40 GW requested	50ERCOT paused Batch Zero large-load interconnection Aug 2026 (audit due Dec 10); ~474 GW requested (~90% DCs)	0Dublin moratorium to ~2028; on-site gen required
Power price 14% weight	100~US$0.044/kWh wholesale	509.31¢/kWh industrial	756.58¢/kWh industrial	0~19–25 €¢/kWh (~US$0.21+)
Clean power / carbon intensity 8% weight	50335 gCO₂/kWh	50~300–330 gCO₂/kWh (est.)	50~335–390 gCO₂/kWh	50~280 gCO₂/kWh
Water availability 8% weight	50Med–High in the south	75Low–Medium (Potomac)	25High–Extremely High (C/W TX)	100Low (high rainfall)
Cooling climate (free-cooling) 10% weight	100~40–90 CDD (Calgary)	50~900–1,200 CDD	0~2,000–2,800 CDD (Dallas)	100~0–50 CDD (Dublin)
Natural-disaster risk 6% weight	75Low (hail, wildfire, flood)	75Low–moderate (inland)	25High (hurricane, tornado, freeze)	100Very low
Land availability & cost 7% weight	75Abundant, cheap	50Scarce/pricey in NoVA	100Abundant, cheap	25Scarce/expensive; planning limits
Construction, material & labour cost 7% weight	50Mid-range N. American	25High-cost metro	75Low-to-moderate	25Among priciest in Europe
Skilled-labour availability 6% weight	50Strong trades; thin DC-ops	100World's densest DC-ops	75Large + growing	75Deep DC-ops; tight build labour
Fibre / network connectivity 4% weight	50Regional (YYCIX); not a hub	100~70% of global traffic (Ashburn)	75Dallas top-5 US market	100Major EU hub (INEX), subsea landings
Policy, incentives & political climate 12% weight	50Stable, market-friendly; connection cap	75Sales-tax exemption; rising NIMBY	50Tax exemption; Aug-2026 audit pause + SB6	25Stable but restricting DCs
Score (out of 100)	61	55	53	43