FN COMMUNITIES SIGN OPTION AGREEMENTS FOR GAS PIPELINE

 Two groups representing the interests of more than a dozen First Nation communities along the Coastal GasLink pipeline route have signed option agreements to acquire a 10-per-cent stake in the $6.7-billion project in northern British Columbia.

The equity option for Coastal GasLink, which is still under construction, will be exercisable once the pipeline is commercially in service sometime in 2023. The agreements, announced March 9, would allow First Nations groups to become owners in Costal GasLink alongside the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo), private equity giant KKR, and TC Energy Corp.

The pipeline, which will eventually connect B.C.’s shale gas resources to LNG Canada’s export project in Kitimat, has sparked demonstrations and blockades from environmentalists and some First Nations groups since construction began in 2019.