Seaspan Commissions New Hybrid Ferries
Seaspan Ferries Corporation (SFC) has welcomed two new dual-fueled/hybrid liquefied natural gas (LNG), diesel and battery vessels to its fleet during a double commissioning ceremony held at its Tilbury Terminal in British Columbia on April 9. The Seaspan Swift and Seaspan Reliant, the first eco-ferries of their kind in North America, were formally christened by sponsors Christy Clark, Premier of British Columbia, and Anisa White, wife of Doug White III, Councilor and Chief Negotiator for Snuneymuxw First Nation. “April 9, 2017 will be remembered as a historic milestone for Seaspan Ferries and we are extremely fortunate to have two sponsors who represent our connection to both the past and future to help bring our new vessels to life,” said Steve Roth, President – SFC.
AltaGas to Build First Propane Terminal on Ridley
AltaGas says it will proceed with construction of Canada’s first West Coast propane export facility. It has federal approval and long-term commercial agreements in hand. The Ridley Export Terminal, located at Prince Rupert, B.C., will be designed to ship 1.2 million tonnes of propane per year and is estimated to cost approximately $450 - $500 million, the company says. The terminal, near Prince Rupert, will cut shipping distances to Asian markets to 10 days from 25 compared the U.S. Gulf Coast, the company says. The project is expected to create 200 to 250 construction jobs and about 40 to 50 permanent jobs once operational. “This export facility is another promising development for our province, connecting producers in northeast B.C. to markets in Asia,” said B.C.
British Columbia Signs LNG Deal with Petronas
B.C. Premier Christy Clark has announced an agreement in principle with Pacific NorthWest LNG, owned in majority by Malaysia's Petronas, for a liquefied natural gas development on the province's northwest coast. Hailed as “the largest capital investment in B.C. history,” Clark said the LNG framework will result in stable, long-term revenue for B.C. and $36 billion in investment, including a proposal for an LNG facility near Prince Rupert. Both are intended to provide certainty to the Petronas-led Pacific Northwest LNG project and encourage them to make a final investment decision to build a project in British Columbia. Although there are 19 proposed LNG projects in B.C.…
British Columbia: Oil Spill Response shows Unprepared for More Tankers
British Columbian officials on Friday criticized the Canadian government's response to an oil spill in the waters around Vancouver, calling into question plans for new crude oil export pipelines in the Pacific Coast province. Nearly 3,000 liters of oil spilled after an anchored bulk carrier began leaking bunker fuel in English Bay, just west of Vancouver's downtown core, on Wednesday. Officials in the province said the coast guard responded but was slow to contain the slick, which spread towards beaches. They said the federal agency failed to notify the cities of Vancouver and West Vancouver until early Thursday, delaying public safety warnings by more than 12 hours. "It took them six hours to get booms in place ...
FortisBC Starts Expansion of Tilbury LNG Facility
FortisBC – a subsidiary of Fortis Inc. has officially started construction of its $400 million Tilbury LNG Facility expansion project today. The company is adding 1.1 million gigajoules of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to storage and 34,000 gigajoules per day of liquefaction capacity. FortisBC marked the occasion with a ground-breaking ceremony attended by The Honourable Christy Clark, Premier of British Columbia; Delta Mayor Lois Jackson; as well as Scott Hamilton, MLA North Delta; and Vicki Huntington, MLA South Delta. FortisBC Energy Inc. operates the only two LNG facilities in Western Canada. The existing Tilbury LNG Facility opened in 1971 and has safely operated in Delta, B.C. for the last 43 years.
Aurora LNG Submits Canada Export Bid
British Columbia’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) proposal at Grassy Point near Prince Rupert has filed its export application with Canada's National Energy Board (NEB). "Aurora LNG is moving forward with their plans to export B.C.'s natural gas to new markets overseas," said Premier Christy Clark. "This marks another step towards realizing the transformative opportunity LNG presents us. "Filing an application for an export license is an important step," said Kevin Reinhart, CEO of Nexen. "However, we still have a lengthy process ahead of us before final investment decisions are made. Aurora LNG has filed its export application just over two weeks after signing a sole proponent agreement with the Province of British Columbia.
Seaspan Breaks Ground on $200m Shipyard Modernization Project
A groundbreaking ceremony today at Vancouver Shipyards, in North Vancouver marks a significant milestone in the re-development of the shipyard into a world-class facility that will build a new generation of vessels for the Canadian Coast Guard and Royal Canadian Navy. Construction will result in the completion of four new fabrication buildings, a shipbuilding gantry crane and a load-out pier. Seaspan will invest approximately $200 million into the yard to deliver outstanding value to the Federal Government and efficiently build the new Non-Combat ships.
B.C., N.S. Lobby for Competing Shipbuilding Bids
According to a report from The Chronicle Herald, the week before last Nova Scotia unveiled a plan to lobby Ottawa on behalf of Irving Shipbuilding Inc.’s Halifax Shipyard, all in a bid to win a $35b contract to build 20 navy ships over 30 years. In an effort to compete with that bid, British Columbia Premier Christy Clark announced that she will go to Ottawa to promote the bid by Vancouver Shipyards Co. Ltd. Source: The Chronicle Herald
