The local government northwest of Salt Lake City unanimously signed off on an agreement to create a special development area that’s intended to include a 7.5-gigawatt data centre backed by Canadian celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary. It’s equal in scale to one he’s planning just outside Grande Prairie, Alta.; the projects are now called Wonder Valley Utah and Wonder Valley Alberta. (The Logic)

Talking point: The Utah data centre is in concert with the Military Installation Development Authority, a state agency that helps the U.S. military make commercial use of its property there, as part of a bigger plan called the Stratos Project. The county’s approval isn’t a final step—other regulators will go over precise plans—but it was an important one. Countering some of the very vocal objections to the proposal, the county said Wonder Valley Utah will use groundwater that’s too salty for drinking or farming and will draw on an existing gas pipeline for power.