The Financial Post reports in its Thursday edition that some natural gas producers are still hoping to lure data centre developers to Western Canada by offering bespoke alternatives to congested power grids even as the AI sector's perceived endless appetite for electricity comes into question. The Post's Meghan Potkins writes that Pine Cliff Energy earlier this month struck a definitive 25-year deal with an unnamed data centre developer to supply between 3.2 million and 4.8 million cubic feet per day (mmcf/d) of natural gas, which represents around 5 per cent of its production. It was described by one analyst as "a nice little hedge" for the intermediate producer. Pine Cliff said its partner plans to construct and operate a sub-100-megawatt data centre adjacent to one of its gathering facilities near Drumheller, Alta., and use large natural gas engines to power its off-grid operations. "Projects like this don't require us to send our gas anywhere other than right into our backyard," Pine Cliff chief executive officer Phil Hodge said. "That's really key. It insulates us from some of the unknowns and the volatility that's going to be in the markets. Too much of our production today is exported into the United States."