By Chester Dawson
CALGARY-- Korea Gas Corp. is seeking to sell part of its 15%
stake in a Royal Dutch Shell PLC-led natural gas export terminal
planned for the Pacific coast of Canada, according to a
spokesperson for the project.
The project, dubbed LNG Canada, is one of 18 multibillion-dollar
terminals proposed for shipping LNG to global markets, and
particularly Asia, from Canada's west coast. None of the plants
have been built, as there have been concerns about construction and
operational costs.
"We are aware that Kogas is investigating divesting some of its
share interest in LNG Canada," the project spokesperson said. "LNG
Canada remains committed to working together to move the proposed
project forward and continue working toward project milestones
before making a final investment decision," the spokesperson
said.
Shell's Canadian unit owns half of the LNG project in
partnership with affiliates of Chinese state-owned energy company
PetroChina Co., which owns another 20%, along with 15% stakes each
for Korea Gas and Japan's Mitsubishi Corp. Korea Gas and Mitsubishi
have already trimmed their stakes from 20% each in April and Shell
has increased its share from 40%.
The planned move to further pare its stake was first reported by
energy data provider Platts, which quoted a Korea Gas executive as
saying the company aims to sell an additional 5% of its equity in
LNG Canada by the end of the year. Representatives for the company
in Canada were unavailable for immediate comment.
Earlier this month, documents filed with regulators in British
Columbia showed the LNG Canada project could cost up to 40 billion
Canadian dollars ($35.3 billion). Shell has said it would make a
decision by mid-decade on the plant and that construction would
take about five years before production begins.
The cost would range from C$25 billion to C$40 billion, not
including a C$4 billion pipeline to carry shale gas 400 miles (644
kilometers) from inland British Columbia, according to LNG Canada's
filing with the British Columbia government for an environmental
assessment certificate, a key regulatory requirement.
Write to Chester Dawson at chester.dawson@wsj.com
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