Latest news with #LNGCanada
Edmonton Journal
3 days ago
- Business
- Edmonton Journal
Varcoe: Carney government needs 'quick wins' from energy projects and to address internal challenges on Bill C-5, says new report
Article content 'This is an existential moment for Canada where we have both an opportunity and an obligation to become both more prosperous and more sovereign.' Article content Article content Prime Minister Mark Carney told the Calgary Herald recently it is 'highly likely' an oil pipeline to the Pacific Coast will be included on the federal list, although he said it will be up to private sector proponents to drive any proposal. Article content The report calls Bill C-5 a 'welcome transformative step' as it will allow Ottawa to streamline the authorization of major projects and approve them within two years, co-ordinated by a single federal office. It will also help meet the growing need for energy in the world. Article content 'There is low-hanging fruit. Some things are ready to go . . . Time is ticking,' report co-author Heather Exner-Pirot said in an interview. Article content 'Let's start seeing some action. Let's start seeing some projects.' Article content Article content If the changes under Bill C-5 had been in place for three energy projects that were completed earlier this decade — the Trans Mountain expansion, LNG Canada and the Coastal GasLink pipeline — it would have been valuable, but led to a 'relatively modest' average time savings of 1.5 years, the study notes. Article content These findings highlight the need to address challenges early in the development of a major project, it states. Article content Projects that should be on the list and can move quickly include the Ksi Lisims LNG project on the northwest B.C. coast, a second phase of LNG Canada, and steps to boost the capacity of Trans Mountain, said Exner-Pirot, who is also director of natural resources, energy and environment at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. Article content However, the bill has sparked some criticism about the impact of speeding up the approval process, and Carney met with First Nations leaders last week and heard some of their concerns with Bill C-5. Article content Article content 'Free, prior and informed consent on First Nations Lands is non-negotiable. An advisory role is inadequate for real partnership,' Grand Chief Greg Desjarlais of the Confederacy of Treaty 6 First Nation said Friday in a news release. Article content 'I will trust actions over words as we look to move forward.' Article content To mitigate risks and concerns about an expedited approval process, Ottawa needs to 'deepen Indigenous engagement . . . to ensure genuine, equitable partnerships and meaningful participation,' states the report from the Expert Group on Canada-U.S. Relations, which includes academics, energy experts and business leaders. Article content 'Consultation should begin as early as possible and continue throughout the project lifecycle.' Article content The report says Ottawa should launch a formal process surrounding co-developing benefit-sharing and equity ownership agreements with Indigenous communities for major projects. It recommends transparent standards for consultation, such as timelines and public disclosure of the outcomes.
Calgary Herald
3 days ago
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Varcoe: Carney government needs 'quick wins' from energy projects and to address internal challenges on Bill C-5, says new report
Article content 'This is an existential moment for Canada where we have both an opportunity and an obligation to become both more prosperous and more sovereign.' Article content Article content Prime Minister Mark Carney told the Calgary Herald recently it is 'highly likely' an oil pipeline to the Pacific Coast will be included on the federal list, although he said it will be up to private sector proponents to drive any proposal. Article content The report calls Bill C-5 a 'welcome transformative step' as it will allow Ottawa to streamline the authorization of major projects and approve them within two years, co-ordinated by a single federal office. It will also help meet the growing need for energy in the world. Article content 'There is low-hanging fruit. Some things are ready to go . . . Time is ticking,' report co-author Heather Exner-Pirot said in an interview. Article content 'Let's start seeing some action. Let's start seeing some projects.' Article content Article content If the changes under Bill C-5 had been in place for three energy projects that were completed earlier this decade — the Trans Mountain expansion, LNG Canada and the Coastal GasLink pipeline — it would have been valuable, but led to a 'relatively modest' average time savings of 1.5 years, the study notes. Article content These findings highlight the need to address challenges early in the development of a major project, it states. Article content Projects that should be on the list and can move quickly include the Ksi Lisims LNG project on the northwest B.C. coast, a second phase of LNG Canada, and steps to boost the capacity of Trans Mountain, said Exner-Pirot, who is also director of natural resources, energy and environment at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. Article content However, the bill has sparked some criticism about the impact of speeding up the approval process, and Carney met with First Nations leaders last week and heard some of their concerns with Bill C-5. Article content Article content 'Free, prior and informed consent on First Nations Lands is non-negotiable. An advisory role is inadequate for real partnership,' Grand Chief Greg Desjarlais of the Confederacy of Treaty 6 First Nation said Friday in a news release. Article content 'I will trust actions over words as we look to move forward.' Article content To mitigate risks and concerns about an expedited approval process, Ottawa needs to 'deepen Indigenous engagement . . . to ensure genuine, equitable partnerships and meaningful participation,' states the report from the Expert Group on Canada-U.S. Relations, which includes academics, energy experts and business leaders. Article content 'Consultation should begin as early as possible and continue throughout the project lifecycle.' Article content The report says Ottawa should launch a formal process surrounding co-developing benefit-sharing and equity ownership agreements with Indigenous communities for major projects. It recommends transparent standards for consultation, such as timelines and public disclosure of the outcomes.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
LNG Canada's start-up yet to lift gas prices amid supply glut
By Amanda Stephenson and Curtis Williams CALGARY (Reuters) -Last month's start-up of LNG Canada, the country's first large-scale liquefied natural gas export facility, has failed to lift Western Canadian natural gas prices as quickly as some market participants and observers expected, due to a persistent supply glut and the gradual pace of the facility's ramp-up. Shell-led LNG Canada shipped its first cargo of 70,000 metric tons from the country's Pacific coast on June 30, to South Korea. The export facility, located in northern British Columbia, is anticipated to bring 2.1 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of new gas demand to Western Canada, and help gas prices recover from an extended period of weakness from oversupply and warmer winters that have reduced home heating demand. That boost to prices has yet to materialize. While prices at the Alberta Energy Company (AECO) storage hub have come off last year's lows of 5 cents per million British thermal units, it is still hovering around $1.10 per mmBtu, approximately a third the value of the U.S. Henry Hub benchmark price, according to LSEG data. "We're probably a dollar off where we thought in January we'd be," said Chris Carlsen, CEO of gas producer Birchcliff Energy. The recent downward trend in the forward price curve for Western Canadian gas indicates the market believes it may now take longer than previously expected to draw down supply, said Trevor Rix, director of intelligence with Enverus. IMBALANCE IN THE SYSTEM Producers have been ramping up output in expectation of LNG Canada coming online, Rix said. LNG Canada, the first of a handful of Canadian LNG projects, in late June started up Train 1, which has a capacity of 6.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), or half of the total output of the facility when the second train comes online. Canadian gas production hit a record high in 2024, averaging 18.35 bcfd, according to statistics from the Canada Energy Regulator. For the first quarter of 2025, production averaged 19.24 bcfd, which would result in record production this year if the trend continues. Gas storage capacity in Western Canada is essentially full, at 635 billion cubic feet in inventories. LNG Canada has been using under 400 million cubic feet per day, well below the first train's design capacity because of a problem with one of the lines at Train 1, two people familiar with the plant's operation told Reuters. Repairs are under way and Train 1's production is expected to increase over the next three weeks, putting full output of 1 billion bcfd closer to the end of August, the people said. The second train is not expected to achieve full production until next year. It is normal for LNG facilities to take months to achieve full production, said Mike Belenkie, CEO of Calgary-based gas producer Advantage Energy. While he said most Canadian gas drillers have strong enough balance sheets to ride it out until the market improves, the extended downturn has weakened companies' abilities to return capital to shareholders. "We're instead all in a holding pattern," Belenkie said. Weather conditions in Western Canada this summer are also contributing to the gas oversupply, as fewer extreme heat days have meant less demand for air conditioning. There are approximately 200 drilled but uncompleted wells in British Columbia's Montney gas-producing region currently, about double the norm, according to Enverus data. That is a sign producers have recognized the imbalance in the market and are holding off bringing new wells online until prices improve, Rix said. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Nova Scotia Eyes Return to Offshore Natural Gas Exploration
As LNG Canada shipped its first LNG cargo from the newly completed facility in Kitimat, on the northwest coast of British Columbia, activity is ramping up on the East Coast especially offshore natural gas. LNG Canada consists of an export plant that cools the natural gas to a liquid using a combination of hydroelectricity and natural gas, states LNG Canada — a consortium of Shell, Mitsubishi Corporation, Petronas, PetroChina and Korea Gas Corp. The accompanying pipeline, called Coastal GasLink, is a partnership owned by affiliates of TC Energy, Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo), and US private equity firm KKR. Simultaneously, the Maritime province of Nova Scotia is getting back into petroleum exploration for the first time since 2018, when its last offshore natural gas project ended. According to CBC News, The joint provincial-federal offshore energy regulator announced Monday it's issuing a call for bids for offshore oil and gas exploration on 13 parcels totalling more than 3.3 million hectares… The Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Energy Regulator is advertising exploration licences around the Scotian Shelf and Scotian Slope, which are close to but exclude the Sable Island National Park Reserve and the Gully Marine Protected Area. A government news release says there is a known reserve of at least 3.2 trillion cubic feet of offshore natural gas on the Scotian Shelf. Companies have the better part of a year to submit bids. The deadline is April 28, 2026. Nova Scotia Energy Minister Trevor Boudreau said offshore natural gas presents a 'major economic opportunity'. Although Boudreau said the province is committed to reaching 80 percent renewable energy consumption by 2030, he maintains natural gas is key to the transition. Nova Scotia still burns a lot of coal but 2030 has been set as the year for Nova Scotians to stop using the carbon-emitting fuel for fossil fuels-to-renewables strategy features offshore wind. Premier Tim Houston has been pitching upwards of 60 megawatts. The CBC quoted Boudreau saying he believes offshore wind and offshore petroleum can operate in tandem — a claim that NDP leader Claudia Chender questions. It was in 2022 that the regulator last put out a call for offshore petroleum. An exploration license was issued to Inceptio Limited in 2023, but within two months Nova Scotia and the federal government vetoed the regulator's decision and the license was withdrawn. According to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), about 4 percent of Canada's oil production comes from four projects offshore Newfoundland and Labrador: Hibernia, Terra Nova, White Rose and Hebron. Hibernia was the country's first offshore oilfield to come online in 1997. Hebron was the latest in 2017. Hibernia is currently Canada's second largest oilfield, with cumulative production about half that of the largest field, Pembina in Alberta. The four offshore fields produce an average 240,000 barrels per day. The offshore oil industry of Nova Scotia accounts for about 0.07% of Canadian petroleum production. The majority of its offshore industry is located on the Nova Scotian continental Shelf, within the Sable Island offshore natural gas fields. (Wikipedia) New discoveries Norwegian oil giant Equinor started the ball rolling in January on a project to develop its Bay du Nord oil project off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador by awarding front-end engineering design work. The project is located in the Flemish Pass basin, about 500 km northeast of St. John's, in waters approximately 1,170 meters deep. Equinor received approval from the Canadian government to develop Bay du Nord in April 2022. However, in 2023, the project was shelved for three years due to a rise in costs. Offshore Energy reports Bay du Nord, once developed, is expected to be among the world's lowest-carbon projects per barrel of oil. Equinor says the company made the first discovery in 2013, followed by additional discoveries in 2014, 2016 and 2020. The later discoveries, lying about 650 meters deep, are in an adjacent exploration license and are potential tie-ins in a joint project development. The $12 billion Bay du Nord field will be developed using a floating production platform for storage and offshore loading. US-based oil major ExxonMobil said in June it has discovered 75 million barrels of oil at its producing Hibernia and Hebron fields. Upstream Online says the news will be welcomed by Newfoundland and Labrador following a number of high-profile exploration failures in recent years. Located in the Jeanne d'Arc basin, the Hibernia and Hebron complexes are largely exploited by huge concrete gravity based (GBS) platforms - designed to deflect icebergs - from which platform rigs drill infill, development, appraisal and exploration wells. The exploration wells target untapped reservoirs and fault blocks where sub-surface mapping indicates oil is present. Kerry Moreland, president of ExxonMobil Canada, said two of these recent wells were successful: one discovering 50 million barrels at Hebron and another finding 25 million barrels at Hibernia. Apart from the Flemish Pass basin, the other area considered prospective for development is the Orphan basin. BP Canada has applied to drill it. In Nova Scotia one exploratory project and 22 production wells have come and gone: the Sable Offshore Energy Project and the Shelburne Basin Venture Exploration Drilling Project. The Sable Offshore Energy Project was Canada's first offshore natural gas project. It was comprised of seven offshore platforms in five fields with 22 wells and 340 kilometers of subsea pipeline. The development was spread over 200 square kilometers near Sable Island in the North Atlantic. The seven platforms were located in shallow water with depths between 22 and 76 meters. The Sable Offshore Energy Project was the most recent offshore petroleum project in Nova Scotia. Operations ended in 2018. Source: Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board. Interfield pipelines connected satellite fields to the central Thebaud complex, which included a processing facility and accommodations unit, a wellhead platform and a compression deck. The Thebaud complex was connected by a 200-kilometer subsea pipeline to a gas plant located at Goldboro, Guysborough County. There, liquids were removed and sent by pipeline to the Point Tupper Fractionation Plant for additional processing and with its end products such as propane and butane delivered to market by truck, rail and ship. Market-ready gas was then transported from Goldboro to customers via the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline. The decommissioning process started in 2017, with ExxonMobil taking two years to plug and abandon the wells. (ExxonMobil) Shell Canada proposed to conduct exploratory drilling in the Shelburne Basin, an area 250 kilometers offshore Nova Scotia. The project aimed to drill up to seven exploration wells from 2015 to 2019. However, the first well drilled was unsuccessful, and no further exploration has occurred in the area. By Andrew Topf for More Top Reads From this article on Sign in to access your portfolio
Calgary Herald
09-07-2025
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Canada can become an LNG powerhouse, but it will take innovation and determination
Article content Standing on the jetty last week, watching the first cargo leave, I was reminded that LNG Canada was barely a year into construction when suddenly faced with an unprecedented global pandemic that stretched supply chains, impacted workers and tested capacities. LNG Canada and its valued contractors persevered as a team, and got the job done as a team, safely. Article content Let's be clear: Whatever challenges we have faced or may face in the future, we should not forget the natural advantages we enjoy here in Canada. Article content Designed to produce 14 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) in its initial phase, LNG Canada benefits greatly from our access to abundant, low-cost natural gas from British Columbia's vast resources; a cool northern climate that optimizes production; a deep water harbour that is ice-free all year; and a shipping distance to markets in Asia that is 50 per cent shorter than from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and avoids the Panama Canal. Add to this a highly skilled and growing workforce, and an innovative plant design that incorporates aero-derivative gas turbines and receives auxiliary electric power from BC Hydro, and we have a recipe for success. Article content Article content Our day has arrived, and in many respects, the timing could not be better. The world is hungry for reliable supplies of high quality, responsibly-produced lower carbon energy. Countries around the world want to decarbonize their economies, and they are looking to LNG to help them in their transition. Canada is a respected and stable exporting nation, a good trading partner and a strong alternative to countries with less predictable leadership. Article content From a Canadian perspective, our nascent LNG industry adds much needed diversity to our export markets. We are also demonstrating — again at a time when it's really needed — that British Columbians and Canadians are capable of building big things. And we're capable of doing even more, with more LNG projects in B.C. on the way, and with LNG Canada's Phase 2 expansion that's now under consideration. Article content Article content We see an opportunity to build on our early Phase 1 successes and the benefits it's already providing First Nations, communities, British Columbians and Canadians. Phase 2 would potentially double our production capacity to 28 mtpa, making LNG Canada one of the world's largest LNG export facilities by volume. A final investment decision will take into account factors such as overall competitiveness, affordability, pace, future greenhouse gas emissions and stakeholder needs. Our goal is to continue to design, build and operate a world-class facility at scale. Article content
