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- Premier Danielle Smith and Ontario Premier Doug Ford unveiled a proposed 3,300-kilometer pipeline on Monday that would carry western Canadian oil from Hardisty, Alberta, past Regina and Winnipeg to refineries in Sarnia, Ontario. The line, part of what the Premiers call the Northern Shield Energy Corridor, would move an estimated 500,000 barrels a day with possible expansion to 800,000, and would let Ontario stop routing its western oil through pipelines that cross the United States. The project is still in its early stages with no price tag or timeline, and it builds on an earlier energy-corridor agreement among Alberta, Ontario and Saskatchewan, with an Ontario feasibility study that has cost $11 million so far and is expected to finish by the end of the year. Ford said the Ontario government could own the pipeline and cover construction costs if needed, and Smith said the line could eventually open Alberta oil to European markets. Manitoba has declined to join, with Premier Wab Kinew saying nation-building projects must begin with Indigenous partnership rather than after-the-fact consultation. The proposal comes days after Alberta formally advanced a separate oil pipeline to the British Columbia coast in partnership with Trans Mountain Corp. and Pembina Pipeline Corp.
- Meta announced that the company will spend $13 billion to build a data centre in Sturgeon County, just north of Edmonton, in what the Premier called one of the largest private-sector investments in Canadian history. Meta claims the project will employ 3,000 people at the peak of construction and about 300 full-time staff once operational, and the provincial government says it will generate roughly $250 million a year in royalties, taxes, levies and fees. Meta is also putting about $60 million into local roads and water infrastructure, and the Government says the electricity to power the site will come from a separate $4.6-billion natural gas generation facility that it says will cut the transmission portion of Alberta ratepayers' bills by about 6%. Meta also confirmed that the facility will use a closed-loop water cooling system that draws no water from the surrounding area. Critics remain wary, with environmental activists calling for a moratorium on large data centres until there are legislated environmental protections. Smith said the site was chosen because Alberta's Industrial Heartland has been zoned for heavy industry for four decades.
- The provincial government announced that it is accelerating 41 school projects through its Schools Now program, which it says will deliver more than 39,000 new and upgraded student spaces across the province. Of the 41 projects, 19 are approved for construction funding, and 22 are moving from planning into design, with the Government saying the accelerations cut more than nine months off project timelines. Calgary accounts for 16 of the projects and Edmonton for 11, with the rest spread across communities including Airdrie, Brooks, Chestermere, Red Deer, Sherwood Park, St. Albert, Fort McMurray and Grande Prairie County. Education and Childcare Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said a school in the community lets students learn and grow close to home, while Infrastructure Minister Martin Long said getting schools built faster matters to Alberta families. The $8.6-billion Schools Now program launched in September 2024, and the Government says it will deliver roughly 200,000 new or modernized student spaces by the 2031-32 school year.
- Alberta's new Auditor General, Phil Peters, says he expects his investigation into a health-care contracting scandal to be complete by the end of the year, calling it a top priority for his office. Peters took over in late April after Premier Danielle Smith's government opted not to extend the contract of the previous auditor general, Doug Wylie, who had offered to stay two more years to finish the probe he had worked on for more than a year. The review, announced in February 2025, focuses on deals for private surgical facilities, pain medication from Turkey, and COVID-19 personal protective equipment, and is one of several investigations, including by the RCMP, that followed corruption allegations from the former head of Alberta Health Services. Those allegations have not been proven in court, and a government-commissioned report by retired judge Raymond Wyant found no evidence of wrongful interference by Smith, her ministers or staff. Peters said his mandate lets him dig deeper than that review, with the authority to compel records and subpoena witnesses under oath. The former health executive, Athana Mentzelopoulos, alleges she was fired for investigating questionable contracts, while the Government says she was dismissed for incompetence, and the Opposition NDP has called the matter the biggest government scandal in the province's history.
- The provincial government announced Wednesday that it is committing $50 million over 5 years to the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute to expand the use of artificial intelligence across public services and the wider economy. Premier Danielle Smith said Alberta has spent two decades building a world-class AI sector and is now putting that advantage to work, with Technology and Innovation Minister Nate Glubish saying the Province's early bet on AI research had paid off. The funding is drawn from five ministries, with Technology and Innovation and Advanced Education each contributing $15 million, Assisted Living and Social Services $10 million, and Primary and Preventative Health Services and Education and Childcare $5 million each. The Government says it has invested roughly $100 million in the institute since 2002, and notes it is one of three national AI institutes in Canada alongside Mila and the Vector Institute. Institute CEO Cam Linke described artificial intelligence as one of the defining technologies of our time. The Government says the money will fund AI applications in areas including health care and worker training.