TC Energy Prepares to Meet Generational Demand for Natural Gas

TC Energy Corp., the pipeline company that transports three quarters of Western Canada's natural gas, is prepared to invest in its vast Alberta network to meet 'generational' demand for the fuel.

The company made this statement after an Alberta cabinet report raised concerns over its ability to serve the province's nascent artificial intelligence data centre industry and oil sands projects. The report said TC's future expansion plans for its Nova Gas Transmission Ltd. pipeline are 'misaligned' with projected demand growth, leading to a 'market failure' that has left key growth regions unable to access gas.

TC Energy says natural gas demand is growing faster than infrastructure can be built, but it has invested heavily in the system. In the last decade, it spent $15-billion on expansion projects and plans another $1-billion in planned projects. The company believes that working together with industry, customers, regulators, governments, stakeholders, and rightsholders will help improve conditions to get infrastructure built.

Alberta is considering creating Crown corporations to boost natural gas pipeline development and lure AI data centres. Premier Danielle Smith said it's unlikely the province will make this move, citing private-sector interest as sufficient.