CALGARY—A liquefied natural gas export plant proposed for
Canada's Pacific coast cleared a joint provincial and federal
environmental assessment on Wednesday, moving the
multibillion-dollar project closer to a decision by chief sponsor
Royal Dutch Shell PLC on whether to begin construction.
Dubbed LNG Canada, the planned facility is one of nearly two
dozen terminals proposed for the West coast that would ship natural
gas in liquefied form to energy-hungry markets in Asia.
None of these plants has been built yet amid concerns about
operational costs and regulatory hurdles, but last week Malaysian
state-owned energy company Petroliam Nasional Bhd., commonly known
as Petronas, said it would move ahead with a similar LNG project
subject to obtaining additional approvals from provincial and
federal authorities in Canada.
"Receiving both provincial and federal approval of our
Environmental Assessment is a critical milestone on our path to
making a final investment decision," LNG Canada Chief Executive
Andy Calitz said in a statement.
Shell has said it would make its decision on construction by
"mid-decade" and that the project is expected to cost up to 40
billion Canadian dollars ($32.7 billion). The plant is designed to
produce and ship 13 million tons of LNG a year with an option to
double that volume in the future.
Canada has looked to LNG exports as an outlet to ease a North
American natural gas supply glut and the government of British
Columbia has sought to nurture a LNG industry to attract investment
and create jobs.
The federal environment ministry said its approval of Shell's
plans was contingent on meeting 50 conditions "throughout the life
of the project" to mitigate the effect on wildlife habitat, Native
American land use and human health.
"Canada is a secure, reliable and responsible producer and
supplier of energy to the world that is firmly committed to making
environmental assessment decisions that protect the environment
while growing our economy and benefiting Canadian families,"
Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq said in a statement.
LNG Canada is the third LNG project to win an environmental
assessment certificate from British Columbia following approvals
granted to rival plants led by Petronas and Chevron Corp. Petronas
is awaiting the results of a federal environment assessment, which
is expected later this year.
Shell's Canadian unit owns half of the Canadian 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 Corp. and Japan's Mitsubishi Corp.
Write to Chester Dawson at chester.dawson@wsj.com
Access Investor Kit for Royal Dutch Shell PLC
Visit
http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=GB00B03MLX29
Access Investor Kit for Royal Dutch Shell PLC
Visit
http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=GB00B03MM408
Access Investor Kit for Dominion Resources, Inc.
Visit
http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US25746U1097
Access Investor Kit for Royal Dutch Shell PLC
Visit
http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US7802591070
Access Investor Kit for Royal Dutch Shell PLC
Visit
http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US7802592060
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires