Before Sturgeon County, before the Industrial Heartland — from a blind date arranged with the blessing of the province's industry “concierge,” Meta first wooed the Town of Olds in 2025 and early 2026 as a prospect for its high-voltage $13-billion mega data centre.
Olds, about 200 km south of Edmonton, liked the match. According to the town website, the project promised a broader tax base and less pressure on residential taxes, equating to long-term financial stability.
Jobs and economic alignment
The Olds proposal projected 2,000 temporary construction jobs — fewer than the 3,000 cited for the Edmonton-area Meta centre in Sturgeon County announced last week. However, the Olds deal also included the prospect of 1,000 permanent jobs at full scale, far more than the 300 permanent jobs cited for Sturgeon. The project “aligns with provincial economic strategy,” the town noted.
“The Town of Olds is trying to attract data centres to support our local economy and align with Provincial Priorities,” said the Olds website, outlining both the carrot and the stick. “The Province will never build an additional school or expand a hospital in a town that is not growing.”
Public backlash and regulatory hurdles
But there were issues — a light industrial park with 1,500 residents within two kilometres. When word got out about the courtship, harsh digital graffiti appeared, set ablaze by Meta's own Facebook platform.
“LOCATION MATTERS!” all caps screamed one post on Rebecca Mac's Facebook page. “This is NOT where you build a hyperscale AI data centre with 600 industrial diesel generators, 800 chillers, 10 stacks and a 1.4GW power plant with lithium ion battery storage,” she wrote.
Another wag suggested the data centre might be better placed “close to the premier's base of support.” A third commenter wrote: “Great referendum question, do you want a data centre near you in Alberta?”
Regulatory scrutiny and withdrawal
Meanwhile, Meta's strategists for the Olds plant were barraged by Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) requests for more information. Questions included: “Synapse provided updated renderings of the project on PDF pages 16 and 17 in Exhibit 30732-X1223.01 of the modular design with integrated gas power plants and an open-air mechanical yard. Request: Please provide real-world examples of data centres of a similar size, modular design and an open-air mechanical yard. Please provide examples of real-world gas power plants using the proposed dry cooling system along with the generation capacity and water usage of those examples … Please comment on the assumptions and level of certainty associated with the water use estimates. In your response, provide the qualifications or relevant expertise of the individual(s) who prepared or reviewed the estimates.”
By March 10, 2026, although questions continued to roll in, Meta withdrew the Olds Synapse Development Permit application, effectively ghosting the Alberta commission.
