An Alberta court has rejected a request from O’Leary Digital Limited, a company owned by Kevin O’Leary, to dismiss a judicial review regarding consultation and water rights for the proposed Wonder Valley artificial intelligence data center project in northern Alberta.
The $70 billion project is planned for the Municipal District of Greenview, where the municipality has been granted permission to extract six million cubic meters of water annually from the Smoky River for the project.
O’Leary Digital sought to dismiss a judicial review application from the Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation, claiming the company, as a directly affected party, was not served within the required timeframe.
Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation contends that they were not adequately consulted during the issuance of the water license.
The court decision, announced on Thursday by Justice Parminder K. Johal, found that O’Leary Digital’s link to the license was speculative, allowing the judicial review application to proceed. Additionally, the company’s request to intervene in or be added as a respondent for the Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation’s judicial review was dismissed by Johal.
SLCN Chief Sheldon Sunshine expressed satisfaction with the ruling, stating that the judicial review presents an opportunity to uphold their treaty rights and ensure proper consultation by the Crown. The SLCN anticipates the judicial review to proceed in December.
O’Leary Digital CEO Paul Palandjian, in an email to CBC News on August 14, mentioned that the company is evaluating the court’s decision. Palandjian expressed disappointment with the ruling and disagreed with the continuation of the legal process. He emphasized that O’Leary Digital has engaged in genuine consultations with SLCN and other communities since the inception of the Wonder Valley project, emphasizing their commitment to meaningful consultation, responsible project development, and regulatory compliance.
Chief Sunshine reiterated SLCN’s call for increased consultation, requesting transparency regarding the project’s designs, technical reports, and environmental assessments, similar to other large-scale projects.