Company hopes to build AI data centre at Edmonton Energy and Technology Park

Company hopes to build AI data centre at Edmonton Energy and Technology Park

American-based company asks city to amend area plan to allow for large-scale facility

An artificial intelligence (AI) data centre could go up within Edmonton city boundaries if cards fall into place for an American-based company looking to build in the far northeast section of the provincial capital.

Walton Global Investments Ltd. is asking the city to change some development rules in sections of the Edmonton Energy and Technology Park to allow for a large-scale data centre.

The site, which is located north of Anthony Henday Drive and borders Sturgeon County, is governed by an area structure plan (ASP), which outlines how the land can be used and where roads and utilities can be built.

While a small-scale data centre could be considered for the area as a minor industrial use, a large-scale data centre isn’t permitted within the park’s current medium industrial precinct.

On behalf of Walton Global, Stantec Consulting Ltd. submitted an application in July, asking the city to amend the ASP to redesignate 253 hectares of land to allow for the first stage of a data centre.

If council agrees to amend the ASP for the Edmonton Energy and Technology Park, Walton Global would need to submit another application asking the city to rezone the site.

Costs a 'significant deterrent,' application says

The application describes the proposal as a “hyperscale-ready digital infrastructure project within the City of Edmonton, designed to become one of the largest data centre and computer-oriented industrial districts in North America.”

The application says high capital costs in the park are a “significant deterrent” for companies to locate there.

The park, about 5,200 hectares in size, was created in 2010 to “develop the area into a world-class eco-industrial park,” the city’s website says.

The medium industrial precinct allows for a range of logistics, manufacturing and commercial businesses that can support the manufacturing and shipping of products within the petrochemical precinct of the area.

“The area sits largely undeveloped as of 2026, representing a substantial missed opportunity to attract economic development activities and correspondingly increase the non-residential tax base for the city,” Stantec’s application says.

Some people living in neighbourhoods located a few kilometres away, such as McConachie, Cy Becker and Horse Hill, are raising concerns about how a potential AI data centre in the area could impact them.

In an email to CBC News, Horse Hill community league president Nasab Radwan said area residents are concerned about electricity use, utility costs, water use, noise, impacts on health, property values and wildlife.

“How much electricity will each facility use at full capacity?” she said. “Will our electrical bills increase as a result?”

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Radwan said people are also worried about industrial noise generated from cooling equipment and fans.

“Our home values are a significant concern and large industrial centres, power-generation facilities, heavy traffic, lighting, noise and air pollution could affect the character and the desirability of our community,” she said in her email.

CBC News reached out to Stantec Consulting and Walton Global for comment on the concerns raised by area residents.

The city launched public engagement on the proposal on Sept. 28 and plans to gather public feedback until Oct. 25.

City planners have responded to some concerns raised by Edmontonians on the city’s website. They noted Epcor oversees water usage and that a high-level technical review of how the proposed development could impact water consumption is currently underway.

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Provincial regulatory bodies are also responsible for certain areas, planners noted.

For example, it’s up to the Alberta Utilities Commission to approve construction of new power facilities such as power plants, transmission lines and backup generation sources needed to supply a data centre.

City administration will compile the feedback it receives from the public engagement on the northeast Edmonton data centre proposal and set a date for a future public hearing on the matter at city hall.

City council will hear from anyone who signs up to speak at the public hearing.

Coun. Ashley Salvador raised a motion at city hall this week, asking city managers to analyze the tools the City of Edmonton has to regulate and restrict large-scale data centres.

She said the pace at which AI data centre projects are being proposed across the province — and country — is concerning many residents.

“Many municipalities are now starting to grapple with the rapid expansion of large-scale data centres,” Salvador said in an interview with CBC News on Wednesday.

“It definitely raises some really important questions around how are we preparing and what steps can we take as a municipality to make sure we are protecting our environment and protecting the liveability of our communities?”

Salvador is asking city administration to report back to council by the end of the year to clarify how the city can amend its zoning bylaw to differentiate data centres from other industrial uses.

Natasha Riebe landed at CBC News in Edmonton after radio, TV and print journalism gigs in Halifax, Seoul, Yellowknife and on Vancouver Island. Please send tips in confidence to natasha.riebe@cbc.ca.