Building on RMA’s Data Centre Primer, the Regulatory Guide provides a high level overview of the approval frameworks for data centre developments and their co-located power plants.
In April 2026, RMA released the Data Centre Primer to assist members in navigating and making informed decisions about the emerging data centre industry. The Primer summarized the legislative landscape from December 2024 through Spring 2026 and provided an overview of the issues, changes, decisions, and amendments impacting the sector up to that date. These included the Government of Alberta’s AI Data Centre Strategy, electricity availability, water usage considerations, and impacts to municipal assessment and taxation, including the provincial Data Centre Computing Equipment Levy.
However, in the months since the Data Centre Primer was released, RMA members have started asking more complex questions about how these types of developments are regulated and how data centres and their associated power plants move through the approval process.
To address some of these questions and provide an overview of how these complex projects move from proposal to construction and through to operation, RMA is now releasing a Data Centre Regulatory Guide. This second, more technical resource outlines the various regulators and approval pathways for both grid-connected and “bring-your-own-power” data centres, as well as the interaction between municipal and provincial jurisdiction for both types of projects due to their different regulatory requirements.
Throughout both the Primer and the Regulatory Guide advocates for rural municipalities to be properly informed by proponents and regulators and retain the autonomy to determine what economic development activities to advance, keeping in mind their local circumstances, landscapes, and priorities.
Given the frequent legislative and policy changes regarding data centres, RMA will update the member resources from time to time to reflect the current state of affairs and ensure members have access to timely, accurate information.
For more information, contact RMA’s Policy and Advocacy team at advocacy@rmalberta.com or 825.319.2383.