Carney in Vancouver as LNG Canada sanctions Kitimat expansion

Prime Minister Mark Carney was in Vancouver on Tuesday as Shell-led LNG Canada confirmed its partners had sanctioned a Phase 2 expansion that would roughly double capacity at the Kitimat, B.C., liquefied natural gas export terminal. The consortium said the green light clears the way for two additional processing trains adding about 14 million tonnes a year, bringing total capacity to roughly 28 million tonnes annually. LNG Canada began exports from its first phase in 2025..

Joint venture participants include Shell, PETRONAS, PetroChina, Mitsubishi Corp. and KOGAS. The federal Major Projects Office has cited about $33 billion in expected private capital linked to the expansion. TC Energy Corp. separately said it would proceed with expanding the Coastal GasLink pipeline that feeds the Kitimat plant from northeastern British Columbia.

Carney’s itinerary described an “historic” energy-sector investment. The project was among those referred to the Major Projects Office as Ottawa seeks to accelerate major infrastructure and lift LNG exports. Industry groups welcomed the decision as a signal that large energy projects can still reach final investment decisions in Canada amid global demand for secure supply.