The Canadian government is in discussion with the companies behind two proposed east coast liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities to see how it can speed up the projects and help boost supply to Europe, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson told Reuters on Friday.
Wilkinson said the government was looking at Spanish company Repsol’s LNG facility in New Brunswick and the Goldboro LNG facility in Nova Scotia proposed by Pieridae Energy.
Ottawa has held talks with European countries about ways to boost energy exports to the continent after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine upended oil and gas supplies. However, Canada, the world’s sixth-largest natural gas producer, does not have any east coast LNG facilities and only one under construction on its west coast.
“We are looking at Goldboro and Repsol’s projects and discussing these with the proponents and with German and European counterparts,” Wilkinson said in an interview.
“We are looking at whether there are things we can do to expedite one or more of the projects in a manner that’s consistent with environmental considerations and a long-term transition to a lower-carbon future.”
Neither company immediately responded to requests for comment.