By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Dec. 1 -- Georgia Strait Crossing Pipeline Ltd., on behalf of GSX Canada LP, has received approval from a joint review panel to construct and operate a 37.2 mile, 16-in. natural gas pipeline from Boundary Pass, east of Saturna Island, BC, to an interconnection with the existing Terasen Gas (Vancouver Island) Inc. pipeline at a point west of Shawnigan Lake and south of Duncan on Vancouver Island.
The proposed line is the Canadian portion of the Georgia Strait Crossing Project (GSCP), a new international pipeline that would transport gas to northwestern Washington and Vancouver Island.
The panel was established under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and the National Energy Board Act to conduct a joint review of the pipeline project.
Approval of the proposed pipeline is contingent on the fulfillment of a number of conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals for the proposed Vancouver Island Generation Project (VIGP) facility to be located at Duke Point, near Nanaimo, BC.
GSCP is jointly sponsored by British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority (BC Hydro) and Williams Gas Pipeline Company LLC. The combined Canadian and US portions of the project is estimated to cost $322.3 million. The estimated capital cost of the Canadian portion is $139.3 million.