Kitsault propose BC FLNG plant

Kitsault Energy has stated that the defunct mining town on the north coast of British Columbia, which the company owns, would translate into the perfect site for a proposed floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) unit.

FLNG plant

Kitsault Energy Director, Dave Pernarowski, highlighted his preference for a floating LNG plant as opposed to a land-based unit. He said an FLNG “will save a considerable amount of time on the backend in terms of construction in terms of the land base”.

Asian Target

“With our phased approach, to get us to a point where we’re physically shipping natural gas across the ocean to Asia and other markets, I think we can get there just as fast, if not faster than some of these other projects.”

The company’s base on Alice arm provides ideal access to the Pacific Ocean for LNG ships. It is also a destination for natural gas pipelines, which stem from northeastern British Columbia.

Although the company does require outside investment and partnership for proposed projects such as the FLNG at Kitsault, projected implementation of pipelines, and natural gas itself, Perarowski remained upbeat on returning from a trip to China:

“Everyone we talked to during our trip expressed a great deal of interest in the natural gas,” he said. “China is looking for large amounts of LNG to power their country and try to move away from coal, they’re really trying to work on environmental issues over on that side of the world. So, burning natural gas instead of the coal burning methods that they’re using now will be a big improvement for them. They’re just very keen on finding opportunities to get access to the natural resource.”

Competition

However, other companies such as Kitimat LNG and BG Group have also begun to capitalise on this opportunity in the Asian markets, with proposals for LNG plants in the Kitimat and Prince Rupert regions. “We may be a little bit behind some of the other activity, but we think we can get there just as quickly,” Pernarowski affirmed.

He observed that these two projects will be supplied by natural gas pipelines from the north of British Columbia and then arrive on the coast at Kitimat before heading south.

“Kitsault is considerably closer to the actual gas fields, so that’s going to save any company that partners with us billions of dollars in pipeline construction, environmental assessment through waterways, etc.”, Pernarowski concluded.

Edited from various sources by Ted Monroe

Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/lng-shipping/16092013/flng_plant_proposed_by_kitsault/