An LNG tanker fills up in Kitimat. B.C. Shipping from the terminal began in June, 2025.ETHAN CAIRNS/The Canadian Press
Momentum from the industry and governments means it’s time to dust off some of the old engineering studies for liquefied natural gas projects, says the head of Pembina Pipeline Corp.
Scott Burrows’ optimism reflects broad sentiment in the LNG sector right now. Not only is global demand for the fuel continuing to grow, but Canada has finally entered the export market in a substantial way with the startup of the LNG Canada export terminal in Kitimat, B.C.
In the words of Luke Schauerte, the chief executive of Woodfibre LNG, “LNG is so hot right now.”
At the Energy Roundtable conference in Calgary this week, various industry CEOs spoke about how they are seeing promising leads that can spur significant sector growth.
Their confidence is driven by multiple factors, including pivotal regulatory and permitting changes coming out of Ottawa, such as a proposal to reverse the order of pipeline approvals so cabinet could green-light new projects prior to the completion of technical assessments and approvals.
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Many speakers said they are also pleased with the federal government’s Major Projects Office, which is supposed to identify nation-building projects for regulatory fast-tracking and facilitate hundreds of millions of dollars in funding.
Years of potential development were lost to prior policies, but recent changes are establishing the conditions to scale up development in a big way, Mr. Burrows said in an interview on the sidelines of the conference.
“This is providing a climate to start dusting off some of the studies and some of the engineering” of various past projects to give them another look, he said.
The conflict in Iran and resulting energy crisis has upended global oil and gas trade, and Canada has the resources and the stable environment needed to capitalize on a new supply landscape, Mr. Burrows said.
“We don’t have a supply choke point, we don’t have the Strait of Hormuz, we don’t have the Suez Canal. We have a straight shot to Asia, where we believe the demand is coming from. So, there are some real structural advantages.”
But Canada must seize its chance to pursue a greater share of LNG exports in the next three to five years, he said.
“You look at the number of proposed LNG projects across the world, whether it’s in the Middle East or in the U.S., the time is now. If we don’t act, we’re going to lose this generational opportunity.”
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Mr. Schauerte has been in the natural gas sector for 20 years. The fuel didn’t draw much commentary in the past, he said, adding, “it’s shocking to me that LNG has become common language across Canada.”
The fundamental deterrent to project development in Canada has been the capital planning side, he said.
“You can’t have three, $400-million parked for six, seven, eight or 10 years on the idea that you might get an approval, and then it can’t take the next six, seven, eight years to actually go back and finish the project, Mr. Schauerte said.
Speeding up approval processes will help, but Canada needs to build in a more competitive way or it will remain a distant competitor to Qatar and the United States, he said.
“In the last 10 years, the U.S. built 10 times the capacity for LNG that we built. So, for me, it’s possible. I think it’s a compelling business case. I think you have to have a mix of long-term and short-term contracts to make that possible, but ultimately we have to get out of our own way in Canada.”
Despite promising conversations with the federal and B.C. governments about what needs to change for the sector to be successful, CEOs at the event said challenges remain.
Nothing can be done about Canada’s unique geography – building pipelines over the Rocky Mountains is hardly a walk in the park, for example – but the country’s limited labour pool and onerous regulatory process must be addressed, they said.
And many of the CEOs remain staunchly opposed to a price on carbon, which they said layers another cost on the top of an already pricey development environment.
“I’m going to respectfully disagree with the Prime Minister’s comments around people being willing to pay for low-carbon energy, because they’re not,” Mr. Burrows said.
The Cedar LNG project in Kitimat, of which Pembina is a partner, is set to be one of the lowest-emitting natural gas projects in the world, Mr. Burrows said. But when it started, marketing it and looking for customers, “not one person cared or was willing to pay for lowered carbon LNG,” he said.