Energy board OK’s its first 40-year natural-gas export licence for LNG Canada
VANCOUVER — Plans for a liquefied-natural-gas export facility on British Columbia’s northwest coast inched forward after backers received the first-ever 40-year export licence issued by the National Energy Board.
The regulatory board granted LNG Canada the licence Thursday, allowing the international joint venture led by Shell (TSX:SHC) to export up to 38-billion cubic metres of liquefied natural gas annually from a terminal to be located near Kitimat, B.C.
LNG Canada will be allowed to export up to 1,494-billion cubic metres of gas over the 40-year term, but the licence will expire Dec. 31, 2022 unless exports have begun.
The licence is a significant milestone for the project, said LNG Canada CEO Andy Calitz.