Media statement - September 20, 2022
TC Energy CEO François Poirier comments on global energy crisis and growing LNG demand
François Poirier
TC Energy President and Chief Executive Officer
LNG as a global solution
Energy demand in North America and the world continues to grow and the utilization of our infrastructure is so high we have virtually no spare capacity. Geo-political developments have underscored the importance of energy security in addition to reducing emissions, especially with the resurgence of coal-fired power generation in Europe.
LNG is the solution—it can help the world achieve both energy security and emissions reduction.
Our natural gas network is indispensable in helping to solve the global energy crisis by supplying the world with a sustainable, reliable, affordable and secure source of LNG. Our system connects the continent like no other energy company in North America. Our extensive pipeline system delivers natural gas from northwest Alberta and northeast B.C. to be delivered to Mexico City. And soon, we will provide Canada’s first direct link for global export via Coastal GasLink on B.C.’s West Coast.
NGTL Expansion
We are providing increased capacity and market access through our multi-billion-dollar expansion program, investing nearly $10 billion in system expansions from 2017 to 2021 to increase market access for Canadian natural gas supply. However, we have and continue to face growing external challenges to complete our expansions on time, including additional regulatory requirements and regulatory and government delays in approvals.
Delays and process uncertainty impact our customers’ ability to move gas to critical markets, affecting Canada’s overall ability to remain competitive. More importantly, delays and process uncertainty hinder confidence in the advancement of natural gas projects that facilitate coal-to-gas conversion, global energy security and Canada’s path toward emissions reduction. In addition, we believe these delays pose a significant risk for future energy projects of all types—including low carbon opportunities—setting an unintended precedent for extending project timelines that may jeopardize energy diversity efforts of all types.
We fully support the need for a strong regulatory process and stand behind the critical work done to date to ensure we meet—and even exceed—those standards. We will continue to work with all levels of governments to find solutions that support the advancement of this important and prolific Canadian natural gas supply resource that positions Canada as a sustainable and competitive energy provider.
North America's role
North America has an important role to play. The U.S. is already the world’s largest LNG exporter. Canada is one of the largest natural gas producers in the world and its natural gas has among the lowest emission profiles of any natural gas in the world.
TC Energy has a network of natural gas pipelines across North America. We already move about 25% of the natural gas for U.S. LNG exports and are actively engaged with customers for offerings that leverage our competitive advantage along the Gulf Coast. We are also nearing completion of Coastal GasLink, the first direct path for LNG exports from Canada, which will reduce Asia’s reliance on high-emitting coal-fired generation and indirectly benefit Europe by freeing up supply. Additionally, our strategic alliance with Mexico will see the development of a new backbone of infrastructure to connect natural gas to southeast Mexico—a region and market that has suffered socially and economically due to the lack of access to affordable, clean energy. Our network, also consisting of coastal assets, is well positioned to serve incremental demand from newly announced LNG export projects.
TC Energy is building the energy system of the future that will seamlessly connect North America’s resources with its growing demand. We’ve already established the critical backbone with our vast pipeline network across the continent—and now we’re innovating to make it more sustainable, reliable and secure.