HomeNewsCanada could produce first LNG by this weekend

Canada could produce first LNG by this weekend

6/18/2025
  • First LNG expected to be produced in Canada on the weekend
  • LNG Canada expected to operate initially at 25% capacity
  • LNG tanker on the way to collect first cargo from new plant

Canada could produce its first ever liquefied natural gas (LNG) this weekend, from the LNG Canada export facility in Kitimat, British Columbia, two people familiar with the startup of the plant said on Wednesday.

The facility, the first of a handful of Canadian LNG projects to begin production, will be the first LNG facility in North America with direct access to the Pacific coast, significantly reducing sail time to Asian markets.

When fully operational, it will have the capacity to export 14 metric MMtpy, according to company statements.

"We began cooling down Train 1 on Monday and as long as there is no unforeseen difficulty we expect to produce LNG six days from Monday. So, I would say between Saturday and Sunday we can expect first LNG," one of the people familiar with the startup said.

Cooldown of Train 1 is expected to continue until Thursday June 19 and extensive flaring is expected, LNG Canada told staff in a memo last Friday.

First LNG will be produced from Train 1, with first LNG cargoes by the middle of this year, LNG Canada told Reuters on Tuesday.

Only a portion of the processing plant will be operating this weekend, according to the two sources.

Train 1 which has a capacity of 6.5 metric MMtpy, or half of the total output of LNG Canada, has had difficulties with one of its lines and it will only produce at half its capacity until it is able to solve the problem, one of the two sources said.

LNG Canada did not comment on the production challenges.

LNG tanker Gaslog Glasgow is on its way to LNG Canada's Kitimat port, according to LSEG ship tracking data. The vessel is expected to arrive on June 29 and will be loaded with LNG, the people said.

It is now seven years since the partners, Shell Plc., Petronas, PGAS.KL, PetroChina and Mitsubishi Corporation gave the project a financial go ahead.

Once LNG Canada enters service, Canadian gas exports to the U.S. will likely decline, traders said, as Canadian energy firms will have another outlet for their fuel and will sell more to other countries. For now, the U.S. is the only outlet for Canadian gas.

Canada exported about 8.6 Bft3d of gas via pipelines to the U.S. in 2024, up from 8 Bft3d in 2023 and an average of 7.5 Bft3d over the prior five years (2018–2022), according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). That compares with a record 10.4 Bft3d in 2002.

 

 

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