Meta is building its first big Canadian data center as AI expansion crosses the border

Meta's AI expansion is heading north of the border.

The company said in a blog post on Wednesday that it's building its first data center in Canada, a 1 gigawatt facility in the province of Alberta that will cost Meta about $9 billion and take two to three years to construct. It's Meta's 33rd data center overall and the latest in the company's effort to rapidly build out to meet demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure and services.

Alberta, on the western side of Canada, represents an attractive spot for development due the province's hefty amount of available energy and friendly regulatory environment. The location for the site, in Sturgeon County, has long been zoned for industrial use and is in an area with the capacity for additional energy infrastructure.

"This specific location met the factors we typically look for: good access to infrastructure, a robust electric grid and access to energy, a strong pool of talent, and a great set of community partners that helped us move this project forward," a Meta spokesperson said in a statement.

While Meta continues its aggressive AI buildout, the company is simultaneously planning a new cloud computing business that could involve selling excess capacity to third parties or offering access to AI models hosted within its infrastructure. Investors have been skeptical of Meta's forecast for up to $145 billion on capital expenditures this year as the company has fallen far behind AI model leaders OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, and hasn't shown a clear path to revenue outside of online ads.

Meta's stock is down about 9% this year while the Nasdaq is up 11%.

Meta is racing to stand up AI facilities as it competes with hyperscalers Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon, which all have flourishing cloud infrastructure businesses.

There are also concerns for local communities. A report in June from the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. highlighted environmental issues like emissions, water consumption and noise from big data centers.

Meta said it worked with various energy firms in Canada, including Greenlight Limited Partnership, Altalink, Capitol Power and the Alberta Electric System Operator, "to plan for and meet our energy needs years in advance of this data center coming online."

The company said the project will support over 3,000 construction workers at its peak, and will involve investments in local infrastructure and funding to local nonprofits.

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