Meta has officially broken ground on its first Canadian data center in Sturgeon County, Alberta, advancing a 1-gigawatt facility that will serve as the company’s 33rd global site and primary hub for artificial intelligence workloads. The project, designed to accelerate the development of Meta’s social, communication, and wearable ecosystems, carries an investment exceeding CAD 13 billion. Construction will peak at approximately 3,000 workers before transitioning to more than 300 permanent operational positions. Beyond direct economic impact, Meta has committed CAD 60 million to upgrade regional road and water infrastructure and will launch the Data Center Community Action Grants program to fund local nonprofit initiatives. The company emphasized that all consumer electricity costs will remain unaffected, as Meta fully finances the generation and grid expansions required for the facility. Developed in coordination with the Alberta Electric System Operator, Altalink, Capitol Power, and Greenlight Limited Partnership, the infrastructure upgrades are projected to improve provincial grid reliability. All operational energy will be matched with 100 percent clean and renewable sources. Environmental efficiency is central to the facility’s design. Meta will deploy a closed-loop, liquid-cooled system utilizing dry cooling, which eliminates operational water consumption for thermal regulation. Residual water usage will be confined to domestic needs, fire protection, and equipment maintenance. This approach supports Meta’s corporate target of achieving water positivity by 2030, with all facility energy and water metrics subject to annual public disclosure. The Sturgeon County launch marks a strategic milestone in Meta’s infrastructure scaling, reinforcing its commitment to AI readiness, regional economic development, and sustainable operations.