Shell and its partners are on the verge of signing off on LNG Canada’s Phase 2 expansion, according to a Bloomberg report — a signal the long-anticipated decision may be closer than last week’s reporting suggested.
The expansion would add two more liquefaction trains at the Kitimat, BC facility, lifting capacity from 14 million tonnes a year to 28 million tonnes. Reuters had reported just last week that partners were eyeing a decision “as early as next month,” pegging it to early October. LNG Canada’s first phase cost roughly C$40 billion and began shipping cargo in June 2025.
Read: PetroChina Weighs Selling LNG Canada Stake Before Expansion
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One especially notable piece of the groundwork behind this — a coalition of five neighbouring First Nations has secured the right, through MNT Investments LP, to put as much as C$1 billion into the project, among the largest Indigenous stakes ever offered in a Canadian energy build.
Prime Minister Mark Carney placed Phase 2 on his government’s inaugural list of nation-building projects last September, and Ottawa and BC have since signed multiple cooperation agreements to clear remaining hurdles toward a decision.
Asian buyers, meanwhile, have grown more focused on locking in stable supply as instability spreads across the Middle East and threatens key chokepoints like the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz. Sitting on the Pacific means a much shorter sail to Asian ports than Gulf Coast rivals get, who have to route cargo through the Panama Canal instead.
