Kitimat LNG partners Apache Canada Ltd. (Apache Canada) and EOG Resources Canada Inc. (EOG Canada) announced that they have agreed to purchase the 50 percent interest in the Pacific Trail Pipelines Limited Partnership (PTPLP) they do not own from Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. (PNG) for $50m.
Apache Canada and EOG Canada will pay PNG $30m on closing – expected by the end of February – and a second payment of $20m when the purchasers decide to proceed with construction of the Kitimat liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility.
"Acquiring the PTP is an important step in building a comprehensive system that will enable Apache and EOG to tap Asian markets for our abundant natural gas resources in the Horn River Basin and elsewhere in Western Canada," said Janine McArdle, president of Kitimat LNG.
PTPLP is planning to build a 287-mile, 36-inch diameter underground line from Summit Lake, British Columbia, to Kitimat, the location of the planned LNG export terminal on the northern British Columbia coast. Following the completion of the purchase, Apache Canada will own 51 percent of the partnership and EOG Canada, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, will own the remaining 49 percent.
PNG will operate and maintain the planned pipeline under a seven-year agreement with Apache Canada and EOG Canada with provisions for five-year renewals. Apache Canada and EOG Canada also agreed to 20-year transportation service arrangements requiring them to use a portion of PNG's current pipeline capacity.
Apache Canada and EOG Canada are in marketing discussions with potential Asia-Pacific LNG customers. The producers expect to have firm sales commitments in place by the time the export facility is forecasted to begin operating in 2015.