April 21, 2026

The working group was provided with a draft of the front end of the process, including details on load applicability, generator qualification, application submission requirements, tethering agreements, and related terms and conditions. This draft reflected the working group’s discussions to date and was used as the basis for additional meetings held April 13–14 to further refine the approach. The AESO is now incorporating those updates into a revised process draft, which will be published shortly.

For transparency, the draft process shared with the working group is included with this update to provide visibility into the current direction of the work. This draft DOES NOT represent final outcomes and will continue to evolve as discussions progress. While the front end of the process includes significant detail, the AESO is still assessing the most efficient study paths to enable ready-to-proceed BYOG large loads to advance quickly, without creating unnecessary timeline impacts for non-BYOG projects. Additional detail on study paths will be developed and shared in the coming weeks.

The posted draft process also includes comments where a future data centre regulation may affect certain process elements. In fall 2025, the Government of Alberta passed Bill 8, which enables the Minister to make regulations related to data centres. Given the interaction between the BYOG process and this potential regulation, the AESO will release a final process proposal once the regulation is published and the process has been updated accordingly.

Following release of the updated process proposal, the AESO will hold an industry-wide stakeholder session, with opportunities for questions and written feedback. The process will be finalized and implemented after stakeholder input has been considered. The AESO expects this engagement to occur in the second half of Q2 2026.

March 25, 2026

Following an update and planning session on Feb 9, the AESO held a “sprint week” with the working group Feb 18-20 (discussion only, no material provided). Meetings were held to review and discuss design and implementation questions related to process rollout needs, tethering agreements, project readiness requirements, study paths, and other topics. An additional meeting was held on March 3 for detailed discussions on project readiness requirements. The AESO will next provide the working group with a draft end-to-end process that incorporates the feedback from the meetings, and additional meetings will be held in April to further refine.

We will post another update and next steps in April, with broader industry engagement and rollout of the process occurring in the second half of Q2.

February 17, 2026

We held a kick-off session for the Phase 2A Large Load Working Group on Nov. 28. At their request, we also hosted a Q&A session with the AESO Chief Engineer on Dec. 10 to ensure common understanding of the methodology, inputs and assumptions underpinning the Phase I Interim Interconnection Limit (refer to slides 21-30 of the Phase I Large Load Integration Information Session presentation).

Between Dec. 4 and 17, we hosted one-on-one meetings with each LLWG-2A member to gather detailed input on connection process updates to accommodate large loads that (i) self-supply their own power on-site; (ii) enable net new generation on the transmission system; or (iii) require MW allocations. We provided a straw dog model outlining a sample connection process to support additional discussions. A 'What We Heard' summary has been prepared and provided to reflect common themes from the LLWG-2A individual meetings. Several design and implementation questions emerged, prompting an additional round of group meetings this month.

We'll provide another update and next steps in March.

November 26, 2025

The following organizations will participate in the Phase 2 Working Group, kicking off later this week.

• Beacon AI Centers
• Capital Power Corporation
• Dow Chemical Canada
• eStruxture
• Imperial Oil
• IREN Ltd
• KALiNA Distributed Power
• Kineticor Asset Management LP
• TransAlta Corp.

Thank you to everyone who applied to take part.

November 5, 2025

The AESO is launching the Large Load Working Group (“LLWG-2A”), a targeted industry engagement to explore and develop Phase 2A solutions for “bring your own generation” (BYOG) and MW allocations.

The LLWG-2A will collaborate with the AESO to develop a proposal to update the connection process, ensuring it recognizes and accommodates large loads that: (i) self-supply their own power on-site; (ii) enable net new generation on the transmission system; or (ii) require MW allocations. This effort aims to improve transparency and speed-to-market for projects that support Alberta’s reliability and competitiveness.

The LLWG-2A will follow a structured approach to develop the proposal:

• Identify key challenges in the current connection process
• Understand best practices and regulatory considerations
• Contribute to the design and validation of a proposal for BYOG and MW allocations
• Deliver a final proposal for broader industry consultation in 2026

To ensure informed and balanced input, we are targeting representation from the following groups:

• Data centre developers/end use customers (4 - 6 members)
• Generators (1 - 3 members)
• Industrial load customers (1 - 3 members)

LLWG-2A Selection

• Application Deadline: November 13, 2025
• Notification to Selected Members: November 20, 2025

Proposal Development

• Preliminary Kick-off Meeting (virtual): November 28, 2025
• 1:1 meetings with AESO: Week of December 1 and December 8
• Joint LLWG-2A meetings: as needed

Broader Industry Engagement

• Proposal Release, Engagement Sessions, and Written Comment Period: January-February 2026 (ETA)

For additional information, review the Phase 2A Working Group Supplemental Information and Terms of Reference. All interested stakeholders can apply to participate in the working group via the survey below.