Open this photo in gallery:
Tech giant Meta says it’s building a new AI data centre in Sturgeon County, Alta. The facility, shown in this rendered image, will be a one-gigawatt, nearly 270,000-square-metre data centre powered by a natural gas-fired plant.Sturgeon Data Centre/The Canadian Press
Alberta Technology Minister Nate Glubish will be on hand to host the provincial government’s second town hall on its plan for artificial intelligence centres.
Today’s event is in the town of Redwater, north of Edmonton, in Sturgeon County, which is expected to host a $13-billion AI data centre project planned by tech giant Meta.
It comes after Glubish on Wednesday faced jeers, badgering and boos during a town hall in the central Alberta town of Lacombe.
Alberta data centre plan rejected by commission
Opponents have said they don’t trust the government to control environmental risks, water usage and the cost of energy.
Glubish says the province has developed strict rules to protect local water supplies and keep power bills under control.
Premier Danielle Smith is set to join Glubish for a virtual town hall on Aug. 27, and another in-person town hall is set for next month in Grande Prairie.