TC Energy raises expected cost of Coastal GasLink project to $14.5B
The estimated cost of the Coastal GasLink pipeline has increased by 29 per cent to $14.5 billion, as the company behind the project continues to be dogged by unexpected construction issues and rising labour costs.
Calgary-based TC Energy Corp. released the new price tag, up from an earlier estimate of $11.2 billion, for the project on Wednesday.
The $11.2-billion figure, announced by the company last July, was itself a significant increase from an earlier cost projection of $6.6 billion.
“We are disappointed with the increase in the Coastal GasLink Project costs,” TC Energy chief executive Francois Poirier said in a release.
“We continue to be laser-focused on safely completing this critical piece of energy infrastructure at the lowest possible cost.”
The Coastal GasLink project is a 670-km pipeline spanning northern British Columbia. It will carry natural gas across the province to the LNG Canada processing and export facility in Kitimat, B.C.
Construction of the pipeline is 83 per cent complete and TC Energy hopes to complete the project by the end of this year. However, the company warned Wednesday that if construction extends into well into 2024, it could add up to an additional $1.2 billion to the project's cost.
TC Energy - which warned at its investor day in November that it was anticipating a material increase in the cost of the project - said it has run into a host of problems including a shortage of skilled labour; contractor underperformance and disputes; as well as other unexpected events like drought conditions and erosion and sediment control challenges.
While the company said it is pursuing potential recoveries from contractors to offset a portion of the rising costs, it will recognize an impairment to its equity investment in Coastal GasLink in its fourth-quarter 2022 financial results.
TC Energy said its overall 2023 capital expenditure outlook has been revised to approximately $11.5 to $12.0 billion, reflecting the deferral of certain project spending, expected cost-saving initiatives and incremental funding requirements associated with Coastal GasLink.
In an emailed statement, LNG Canada said it continues to monitor Coastal GasLink's cost and schedule developments.
“While we cannot disclose specifics, a commercial agreement is in place that addresses risk allocation,” the statement said.
LNG Canada is a joint venture between Shell plc, Petronas, PetroChina, Mitsubishi and the Korea Gas Corporation. Its Kitimat LNG export facility is more than 70 per cent complete, and the project partners have said they want to deliver its first LNG shipment to global export markets by mid-decade.
The Coastal GasLink pipeline is not the only major energy infrastructure project in Canada to be plagued by cost overruns. Last February, the Crown corporation behind the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project - which will increase oil transportation capacity from Alberta to the West Coast - announced the new cost of the project was an estimated $21.4 billion, up from an earlier estimate of $12.6 billion.
Trans Mountain Corp. blamed the surging cost projections on the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects of the November 2021 flooding in B.C., as well as project enhancements, increased security costs, route changes to avoid culturally and environmentally sensitive areas, and scheduling pressures related to permitting processes and construction challenges in difficult terrain.
Budget overruns at both pipelines have provided fodder for environmental groups, who believe companies should be investing in green energy instead of traditional fossil fuels.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.