Pembina criticizes Alberta Meta data center gas plan

The Pembina Institute, through David Pickup, has criticized Alberta and Meta’s announced plan to build a 1,800 MW data center in Sturgeon County and to power it with grid electricity plus a new natural gas plant.

• Main action: Alberta and Meta are moving ahead with a 1,800 MW data center in Sturgeon County, and a final investment decision on a separate 932 MW combined-cycle natural gas plant was reached last week.
• Context: Pembina argues Alberta’s “Bring Your Own Generation” rules effectively steer data centers toward gas-fired generation; the note also says Meta plans to match gas generation with future renewables, while the release cites $4 billion in capital costs for the gas plant and compares it with a 900 MW Cascade power plant built two years ago.