Page 7 - GLNG Week 30

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NEB leaves Coastal GasLink to BC
PiPElinEs & tRAnsPoRt
CANADA’S National Energy Board (NEB) has found that the Coastal GasLink pipeline does not fall within federal jurisdiction. e pipeline will transport gas to the LNG Canada project in British Columbia.
e Coastal GasLink does not come under the NEB’s remit, it said on July 26, and does not form part of the NOVA Gas Transmission sys- tem. e province of BC, and the BC Oil and Gas Commission, are the correct authorities to consider the project, the NEB said.
An environmental activist, Michael Sawyer, had submitted a document in July 2018 request- ing NEB oversight of the pipeline plan.
e NEB said it had held a hearing involv- ing 13 participants, with evidence led and var- ious arguments put forward. In particular, this focused on whether the Coastal GasLink was “part of a federal work or undertaking under paragraph 92(10) (a) of the Constitution Act, 1867”. The NOVA system is a gas gathering system in northeastern BC and Alberta and, as a result of its cross-province nature, is NEB regulated. Sawyer’s position was that because of a connection between Coastal GasLink and NOVA, the former should also fall under NEB’s jurisdiction.
e NEB decision was welcomed by Coastal GasLink, owned by TC Energy, previously TransCanada. A statement from the pipeline company noted its only purpose was to carry gas within the province and that it had been through a “rigorous multi-year review”. TC Energy said it intended to nd joint venture partners for the pipeline. e resolution of the NEB case should make such a matchmaking exercise easier.
In October 2018, TransCanada, as it was then, said it would go ahead with the construction of the CAD6.2bn ($4.7bn) link – a decision taken in parallel with the nal investment decision (FID) on LNG Canada. It is expected to be in service in 2023.
On a fundraising site, Sawyer made it clear that his bid to have jurisdiction on the pipeline allocated to the NEB would see the project can- celled and new applications made. e environ- mentalist also described the BC Environmental Assessment Act as “wholly inadequate”, with insu cient public scrutiny of the plan. Further- more, the BC government has “so much political capital invested in ensuring LNG goes ahead that I believe they are incapable of making fair and unbiased decisions about LNG that are in the public interest”.
e 48-inch (1,220-mm) Coastal GasLink will run for around 670km, from the Ground- birch area to the liquefaction site near Kitimat.
Initial capacity of the link will be 2.1bn cubic feet (59mn cubic metres) per day of gas.
e pipeline will have an initial capacity of approximately 2.1bn cf (59 mcm) per day, with the potential for expansion of up to approxi- mately 5bn cf (141.6 mcm) per day. Construc- tion activities began in December 2018, with a planned in-service date in 2023. e Coastal GasLink is backed by 25-year sales agreements with the ve LNG Canada participants.
TC Energy said it had signed project and community agreements with the 20 indigenous groups along the pipeline route. e company also said that the di erence between the esti- mated and nal cost would be recovered through future pipeline tari s.
TC Energy, on July 30, announced the sale of a number of power generation assets in Ontario. e company aims to sell CAD6.3bn ($4.79bn) of assets this year, in order to fund its “near-term capital programme and further strengthen its nancial position”.
Powering up
Given local environmental concerns, compa- nies have taken pains to stress their respect for the local area and also the broader issue of car- bon emissions. LNG Canada will receive power from BC Hydro and is providing CAD24mn ($18.3mn) in funds for the interconnection project, it was reported in mid-July. e total interconnection cost is CAD82mn (62.4mn), BC Local News said.
It went on to report that, should the Chev- ron-backed Kitimat LNG project go ahead, there would be a need for additional power lines.™
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