Natural gas supply in B.C. dramatically greater than original estimates: report

VICTORIA – As British Columbia struggles to produce a proposed liquefied gas industry, a new report suggests the challenges have nothing related to deficiencies in supply.

A National Energy Board report released by the province on Wednesday said gas resources in northeastern B.C., are trillions of cubic feet higher than initial estimates.

The study focused on the Liard Basin, an enormous region of northeastern B.C., Yukon and Northwest Territories.

The report said 848 trillion cubic feet of gas lies under B.C.’s area of the basin, up from the previous estimate of 210 trillion cubic feet.

A release in the Ministry of Natural Gas Development said that pushes the province’s total natural gas potential above 3,400 trillion cubic feet.

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“British Columbia’s resource potential is really a competitive advantage over many other areas of the planet,” said Minister of Gas Development Rich Coleman.

“This report shows our long-term prospects are stronger than ever before and that the Liard Basin can create business activities and jobs in our province for any long time to come,” he explained within the release.

News of the increased stores came as truckers and other LNG advocates across northern B.C., ready for simultaneous rallies on Wednesday in Terrace, Fort St. John and Fort Nelson.

Rally organizers hoped the demonstrations would reveal strong support for the Pacific Northwest LNG project.

It remains promising, but faces uncertainty before the completion of an environmental assessment, and consortium leader Petronas works to resolve environmental concerns along with other difficulties with First Nations.

Based around the new NEB report, ministry calculations reveal that extraction of just 20 per cent of available natural gas will sustain future development and LNG exports in B.C. for the next 160 years.