From the Brandon Sun
CALGARY – One of the world’s largest supplies of shale natural gas is sitting beneath an area spanning the British Columbia, Yukon and Northwest Territories boundaries, according to a new National Energy Board study.
But with dismal commodity prices and no immediate way to export the gas to global markets, the prospect of a development bonanza in the Liard Basin is far from certain.
The NEB said Wednesday that the Liard is Canada’s second-largest known gas resource after the Montney, which straddles B.C. and Alberta. Globally, it ranks ninth, according to the federal energy regulator.
It’s estimated to contain 219 trillion cubic feet of marketable natural gas — enough to meet all of Canada’s demand for 68 years at 2014 consumption rates.
Mike Johnson, technical leader of hydrocarbon resources at the NEB, said it was the first detailed look at the Liard and he was taken aback by its size.
“We expected big,” he said. “It was bigger than we thought it was going to be.”
The bulk of the Liard marketable resource — 167 trillion cubic feet — is in British Columbia, with 44 tcf in the Northwest Territories and eight tcf in the Yukon segment.
“This report shows our long-term prospects are stronger than before and that the Liard Basin can create economic activity and jobs in our province for a very long time to come,” said Rich Coleman, B.C.’s natural gas development minister.
There are already pipelines in the regional, but links would need to be built to connect that gas to its logical outlets: liquefied natural gas terminals planned for Prince Rupert or Kitimat, B.C., which would enable exports to Asia.
