Petronas Debacle Confirms That Canada Simply Isn’t Open for Business | National Post View

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It should not come as any real surprise that sunny ways are a poor substitute for solid economic policy.  This week’s decision by Malaysian energy giant Petronas to abandon its plans to develop a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility on B.C.’s Pacific Coast is a devastating blow to the local and Canadian economies. British Columbia sits atop tremendous reserves of natural gas, which is a relatively low-carbon alternative to heavier fuels that are in use across Asia. Demand for LNG is high across the Pacific region, and yet Canada has not been able to complete a single LNG export project.

Petronas and B.C.’s new NDP-Green government have both justified the cancellation by pointing to global market conditions: the price of LNG has dropped as other projects have come online, mainly in the United States and Australia. That’s hardly the whole story. Petronas still owns billions in natural gas reserves it purchased in B.C., so it’s not likely to needlessly provoke the government there by criticizing it. But those American and Australian projects are moving forward or already online and making money, and expansion of their exports is likely. If they can compete—even in the current price slump—why can’t Canada? Has Petronas given up on the price of LNG ever bouncing back?

Read full article here.

National Post – July 28, 2017.

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