Canadian Energy Centre
B.C. First Nation buying ‘ready-to-go’ natural gas pipeline to supply LNG project
Eva Clayton, president of the Nisga’a Lisims Government, speaks during a homecoming celebration for the House of Ni’isjoohl memorial totem at the Nisga’a Nation, in Laxgalts’ap, B.C., Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. CP Images photo
From the Canadian Energy Centre
By Will Gibson‘It is an opportunity for us to create a better quality of life for our children and grandchildren’
Momentum continues building for Indigenous-led Canadian liquefied natural gas (LNG), with a second project securing a pipeline connection.
The Nisga’a Nation, a small coastal community near B.C.’s border with Alaska, announced earlier this month it will purchase TC Energy’s Prince Rupert Gas Transmission project along with partner Western LNG.
It’s a turning point for the proposed Ksi Lisims LNG project, particularly because the pipeline has all the permits it needs to go ahead, said market analyst Ian Archer.
Rendering of the proposed Ksi Lisims floating LNG project. Image courtesy Ksi Lisims LNG
“Buying this asset, a permitted and ready-to-build natural gas pipeline, puts control in the hands of the project’s partners,” said Archer, S&P Global’s associate director for gas, power and climate solutions.
“The Nisga’a Nation and Western LNG now have control over the timeline and development of their proposed development. It’s a great day for them and the LNG industry in B.C.”
The purchase comes after years of uncertainty for the proposed 900-kilometre pipeline, which would run from Hudson’s Hope in northeast B.C. to Lelu Island, near Prince Rupert.
It was originally supposed to supply the $36-billion Pacific NorthWest LNG project, which was cancelled in 2017.
In 2014, the Nisga’a Nation signed an agreement for construction of the pipeline through its traditional lands. Today, Nisga’a president Eva Clayton says becoming an owner of the project ensures it will provide even greater benefits.
Nisga’a Nation and Western LNG to purchase PRGT natural gas projecthttps://t.co/jPVDa3jzQP pic.twitter.com/Er6ugtTlkV
— NLG – Nisga'a Nation (@NLGNisgaaNation) March 14, 2024
“This means more training, more priority hiring, more contracts and procurement for our workers and businesses, and more investment in our nation,” Clayton said.
“It is a historic development, and an opportunity for us to create a better quality of life for our children and grandchildren here in the Nass – and for First Nations all along the pipeline route.”
Ksi Lisims is a proposed floating facility with capacity to export 12 million tonnes of LNG per year. It is owned by the Nisga’a Nation, Western LNG, and Rockies LNG – a consortium that includes some of Canada’s largest natural gas producers.
Archer, who has spent more than 20 years analyzing the energy sector, sees the partnership as a template for the future.
“The trend now is Indigenous participation in energy developments is seen as a given as opposed to just engagement or consultation with communities,” he says.
“There is a recognition by both energy producers and Indigenous communities that they have a vested interest in exploring and participating in partnerships to responsibly develop oil and gas and build critical infrastructure to support that. That trend will continue to grow because it makes sense for everybody.”
Map of the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission line. Courtesy Impact Assessment Agency of Canada
The momentum is building for Ksi Lisims – which also recently signed on Shell as a long-term LNG buyer and filed its regulatory application for an environmental certificate – hot on the heels of Cedar LNG, another Indigenous-led project on the B.C. coast.
Cedar LNG, owned jointly by the Haisla Nation and Pembina Pipeline Corporation, has regulatory approval to proceed and is preparing for construction to start. A final investment decision is expected by the middle of this year.
Cedar’s pipeline is already in the ground. It will be served by Coastal GasLink, a 670-kilometre pipeline from northeast B.C. to Kitimat that was completed late last year.
The project was built primarily to feed the LNG Canada terminal, which is now more than 85 per cent complete.
Less than a kilometre of connecting pipeline – called Cedar Link – would need to be built to get gas flowing to the Indigenous-owned Cedar LNG project.
Given the appetite for LNG for potential customers in Asia (expected to drive a nearly 70 per cent increase in global demand through 2040), Clayton sees Ksi Lisims as key for providing opportunities for her community.
“For far too long, First Nations could only watch as others built generational wealth from the resources of our traditional lands. But times are changing. Our ownership role in this pipeline signals a new era for Indigenous participation in Canada’s economy.”
Chief David Jimmie is president of Stonlasec8 and Chief of Squiala First Nation in B.C. He also chairs the Western Indigenous Pipeline Group. Photo courtesy Western Indigenous Pipeline Group
From the Canadian Energy Centre
Stonlasec8 agreement is Canada’s first federal Indigenous loan guarantee
The first federally backed Indigenous loan guarantee paves the way for increased prosperity for 36 First Nations communities in British Columbia.
In May, Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV) announced a $400 million backstop for the consortium to jointly purchase 12.5 per cent ownership of Enbridge’s Westcoast natural gas pipeline system for $712 million.
In the works for two years, the deal redefines long-standing relationships around a pipeline that has been in operation for generations.
“For 65 years, there’s never been an opportunity or a conversation about participating in an asset that’s come through the territory,” said Chief David Jimmie of the Squiala First Nation near Vancouver, B.C.
“We now have an opportunity to have our Nation’s voices heard directly when we have concerns and our partners are willing to listen.”
Jimmie chairs the Stonlasec8 Indigenous Alliance, which represents the communities buying into the Enbridge system.
The name Stonlasec8 reflects the different regions represented in the agreement, he said.
The Westcoast pipeline stretches more than 2,900 kilometres from northeast B.C. near the Alberta border to the Canada-U.S. border near Bellingham, Wash., running through the middle of the province.
It delivers up to 3.6 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas throughout B.C. and the Lower Mainland, Alberta and the U.S. Pacific Northwest.
“While we see the benefits back to communities, we are still reminded of our responsibility to the land, air and water so it is important to think of reinvestment opportunities in alternative energy sources and how we can offset the carbon footprint,” Jimmie said.
He also chairs the Western Indigenous Pipeline Group (WIPG), a coalition of First Nations communities working in partnership with Pembina Pipeline to secure an ownership stake in the newly expanded Trans Mountain pipeline system.
There is overlap between the communities in the two groups, he said.
CDEV vice-president Sébastien Labelle said provincial models such as the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation (AIOC) and Ontario’s Indigenous Opportunities Financing Program helped bring the federal government’s version of the loan guarantee to life.
“It’s not a new idea. Alberta started it before us, and Ontario,” Labelle said.
“We hired some of the same advisors AIOC hired because we want to make sure we are aligned with the market. We didn’t want to start something completely new.”
Broadly, Jimmie said the Stonlasec8 agreement will provide sustained funding for investments like housing, infrastructure, environmental stewardship and cultural preservation. But it’s up to the individual communities how to spend the ongoing proceeds.
The long-term cash injections from owning equity stakes of major projects can provide benefits that traditional funding agreements with the federal government do not, he said.
Labelle said the goal is to ensure Indigenous communities benefit from projects on their traditional territories.
“There’s a lot of intangible, indirect things that I think are hugely important from an economic perspective,” he said.
“You are improving the relationship with pipeline companies, you are improving social license to do projects like this.”
Jimmie stressed the impact the collaborative atmosphere of the negotiations had on the success of the Stonlasec8 agreement.
“It takes true collaboration to reach a successful partnership, which doesn’t always happen. And from the Nation representation, the sophistication of the group was one of the best I’ve ever worked with.”
Canadian Energy Centre
Cross-Canada economic benefits of the proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline project
From the Canadian Energy Centre
Billions in government revenue and thousands of jobs across provinces
Announced in 2006, the Northern Gateway project would have built twin pipelines between Bruderheim, Alta. and a marine terminal at Kitimat, B.C.
One pipeline would export 525,000 barrels per day of heavy oil from Alberta to tidewater markets. The other would import 193,000 barrels per day of condensate to Alberta to dilute heavy oil for pipeline transportation.
The project would have generated significant economic benefits across Canada.
The following projections are drawn from the report Public Interest Benefits of the Northern Gateway Project (Wright Mansell Research Ltd., July 2012), which was submitted as reply evidence during the regulatory process.
Financial figures have been adjusted to 2025 dollars using the Bank of Canada’s Inflation Calculator, with $1.00 in 2012 equivalent to $1.34 in 2025.
Total Government Revenue by Region
Between 2019 and 2048, a period encompassing both construction and operations, the Northern Gateway project was projected to generate the following total government revenues by region (direct, indirect and induced):
British Columbia
- Provincial government revenue: $11.5 billion
- Federal government revenue: $8.9 billion
- Total: $20.4 billion
Alberta
- Provincial government revenue: $49.4 billion
- Federal government revenue: $41.5 billion
- Total: $90.9 billion
Ontario
- Provincial government revenue: $1.7 billion
- Federal government revenue: $2.7 billion
- Total: $4.4 billion
Quebec
- Provincial government revenue: $746 million
- Federal government revenue: $541 million
- Total: $1.29 billion
Saskatchewan
- Provincial government revenue: $6.9 billion
- Federal government revenue: $4.4 billion
- Total: $11.3 billion
Other
- Provincial government revenue: $1.9 billion
- Federal government revenue: $1.4 billion
- Total: $3.3 billion
Canada
- Provincial government revenue: $72.1 billion
- Federal government revenue: $59.4 billion
- Total: $131.7 billion
Annual Government Revenue by Region
Over the period 2019 and 2048, the Northern Gateway project was projected to generate the following annual government revenues by region (direct, indirect and induced):
British Columbia
- Provincial government revenue: $340 million
- Federal government revenue: $261 million
- Total: $601 million per year
Alberta
- Provincial government revenue: $1.5 billion
- Federal government revenue: $1.2 billion
- Total: $2.7 billion per year
Ontario
- Provincial government revenue: $51 million
- Federal government revenue: $79 million
- Total: $130 million per year
Quebec
- Provincial government revenue: $21 million
- Federal government revenue: $16 million
- Total: $37 million per year
Saskatchewan
- Provincial government revenue: $204 million
- Federal government revenue: $129 million
- Total: $333 million per year
Other
- Provincial government revenue: $58 million
- Federal government revenue: $40 million
- Total: $98 million per year
Canada
- Provincial government revenue: $2.1 billion
- Federal government revenue: $1.7 billion
- Total: $3.8 billion per year
Employment by Region
Over the period 2019 to 2048, the Northern Gateway Pipeline was projected to generate the following direct, indirect and induced full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs by region:
British Columbia
- Annual average: 7,736
- Total over the period: 224,344
Alberta
- Annual average: 11,798
- Total over the period: 342,142
Ontario
- Annual average: 3,061
- Total over the period: 88,769
Quebec
- Annual average: 1,003
- Total over the period: 29,087
Saskatchewan
- Annual average: 2,127
- Total over the period: 61,683
Other
- Annual average: 953
- Total over the period: 27,637
Canada
- Annual average: 26,678
- Total over the period: 773,662
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