The cost of transporting liquefied natural gas would be higher because a new gas pipeline would be required.
Supplying clean hydrogen to Germany and the rest of Europe is a better opportunity for Canada to build liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals as the world moves away from fossil fuels, the country’s natural resources minister said.
Canada and Germany are discussing building LNG terminals on Canada’s Atlantic coast over the next five years, ahead of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s visit to Canada next week.
Germany has been trying to gain independence from Russian gas since its invasion of Ukraine in February, but the cost of transporting the gas from Alberta in western Canada to the east coast is said to be high.
A new pipeline would be needed, and the global shift from fossil fuels means its lifespans would be too short to be profitable unless converted into a hydrogen terminal when gas demand declines.
“We’re working on those issues. But what I would say is… on the East Coast, hydrogen is the big opportunity,” Natural Resources Secretary Jonathan Wilkinson told Reuters. Wilkinson’s comments reflect a shift in support for potential new East Coast LNG projects. A German official said on Thursday that Canadian LNG would only be “a medium-term solution”.
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