Technologies New Energy has signed an agreement with Data District to support the development of four AI-optimized data centres valued at about $1.3 billion in Alberta.

The agreement covers a pipeline exceeding one gigawatt of capacity, with initial operations targeted from 2026. Phase one is expected to include four data centre projects with a combined capacity of about 240MW and a development budget of €780 million.

Data District, a division of Swiss asset manager Alcral AG, is working with local partners across Alberta’s industrial clusters, which benefit from established energy infrastructure and processing capacity.

The first two facilities will be built in the Central Alberta town of Olds in 2026 and Bonnyville, Alta., northeast of Edmonton in 2027, Postmedia reported. Data District chose to develop the projects in Alberta mainly because of the province’s openness to business and its abundance of energy, Carlos Caldas, the company’s CEO, told Postmedia

 “I would probably say energy might be almost the biggest factor in our decision,” he told his interviewer.

Under the agreement, Portugal-headquartered TNE will support Data District on strategy, supply chain and delivery, including advice on scalable data centre design, integrated power solutions using modular gas generation, batteries and energy storage, and expansion of the skilled workforce needed to build and operate the facilities.

“Our agreement with Data District represents a major step forward in TNE’s strategy to accelerate the build-out of energy and infrastructure critical to the global AI and data-centre economy,” said Julio Perez, CEO of NTE.

Photo: Blackridge Research and Consulting