German state-owned gas importer SEFE said on Wednesday it agreed to purchase 1 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas per year from Canada’s Ksi Lisims LNG to diversify supplies amid unsteady global energy markets.
Under a memorandum of understanding signed on Wednesday, deliveries are set to begin in the early 2030s for up to 20 years, it added.
German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said the deal underscored a strategic energy partnership with Canada.
“By working more closely together, we diversify our supply chains and make our economies more resilient to global risks,” she added.
The Ksi Lisims project is backed by the Rockies LNG consortium of Canadian natural gas producers and the Nisga’a First Nation, who own the land.
It will have annual LNG capacity of 12 million tonnes, making it Canada’s second-largest LNG export facility.
SEFE, formerly owned by Gazprom, was nationalised by Germany in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Like Uniper, the company is tasked with diversifying energy supply after the end of pipeline deliveries from Russia and more recently after the war in Iran further disrupted energy markets.
SEFE already has several LNG deals, including with U.S.-based Venture Global, Argentina’s Southern Energy S.A. and Turkey’s state energy company BOTAS.
Reuters reported last month that European buyers, including Uniper, are interested in LNG from Canada’s Pacific coast, to be shipped through the Panama Canal, to diversify energy procurement.
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger Editing by Madeline Chambers)