Bear Head LNG applies for NEB export license

Nov. 7, 2014
Bear Head LNG Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd. (LNGL), filed an application with Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) to export as much as 12 million tonnes/year (tpy) of LNG. The application also seeks a license to import as much as 503 bcf/year of natural gas from the US.

Bear Head LNG Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd. (LNGL), filed an application with Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) to export as much as 12 million tonnes/year (tpy) of LNG. The application also seeks a license to import as much as 503 bcf/year of natural gas from the US. Both licenses would be for 25-year terms.

LNG exports would begin in 2019 at 8 million tpy, accelerating to 12 million tpy in 2024 depending on market and supply conditions. Gas would come from both Canada and the US, potentially including the Marcellus shale.

Bear Head LNG already has 12 permits in place to build the liquefaction plant, including an approved environmental assessment.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp., the site’s previous owners, spent more than $100 million in the early 2000s to begin preparing it as an LNG import terminal and maintained it in “hot-idle” status since, LNGL said, describing this as a “6 to 12-month advantage against competing LNG export projects.”

Bear Head occupies a 255-acre site on the Strait of Canso near Point Tupper, NS, comprising 180 acres of industrial-zoned land and 75 deepwater acres. LNGL bought Bear Head LNG from Anadarko earlier this year for $11 million (OGJ Online, July 28, 2014). LNGL expects to make an FID on the liquefaction project no earlier than late 2015.

Contact Christopher E. Smith at [email protected].