CALGARY – Japan Petroleum Exploration is buying into Malaysian firm Petronas’ northeastern B.C. shale gas lands and planned West Coast export terminal.
Japex says it has agreed to take a 10 per cent stake in both Petronas’ properties in the north Montney region as well as a proposed liquefied natural gas plant on Lelu Island near Prince Rupert, B.C.
At the facility, called Pacific Northwest LNG, the gas will be chilled into a liquid state so that it can be transported across the Pacific by tanker.
Petronas gained control of those assets through its $6-billion takeover of Calgary-based Progress Energy late last year.
The Japanese company has also committed to buy 1.2 million tonnes of liquefied gas per year – equivalent to 10 per cent of the plant’s annual capacity of 12 million tonnes.
Japex says the deal will help Japan secure long-term supplies of LNG.
