Rocky View County pauses new data centres while Edmonton welcomes Meta deal

Capital Power Corp. agreed in early July to supply 250 megawatts of electricity to Meta's $13-billion data centre north of Edmonton, with power flowing in the second half of 2028. CEO Avik Dey touted the contract Wednesday as a sign that "Alberta is open for business," citing clearer government rules positioning the province near the front of North America's data centre market.

The deal carries no requirement for Capital Power to build new infrastructure — the 250 megawatts will come from its broader Alberta operations, leaving Genesee, its largest plant near Warburg, free to sell to other customers. Genesee supplies roughly 10 percent of Alberta's electrical grid.

Meanwhile, across the province, communities are pushing back. Rocky View County, near Calgary, imposed a temporary moratorium on new data centre proposals on July 21, voting 5-2 to halt rezoning applications until new regulations take effect this fall. The council received a long list of resident opposition letters and emails, with families citing agricultural land loss and environmental concerns.

York University researchers report that nearly 92 per cent of Canada's planned data centre capacity is headed to Alberta, which currently holds 10 per cent of the country's operational facilities. The megawatts may be ready, but local zoning is not.