A Canadian Federal Court of Appeal has ordered Canadian energy regulator National Energy Board (NEB) to reconsider whether TransCanada's Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline project (PRGT) in British Columbia falls under provincial or federal jurisdiction.
TransCanada received final permits from the BC Oil and Gas Commission (BCOGC) in 2015, giving regulatory approval for the construction and operation of the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline project (PRGT). The permits cover the entire 900 km route (about 780 km of land pipeline and around 110 km of marine pipeline) from Hudson's Hope to Lelu Island, off the coast of Port Edward, near Prince Rupert. The project will connect the Montney gas production fields of north-eastern British Columbia with the proposed 12 Mt/year Pacific North West LNG liquefaction project Lelu Island. TransCanada is awaiting a final commitment from Pacific NorthWest LNG on the development of the proposed LNG project to start construction; the liquefaction project received a federal approval in September 2016.
Project opponents are claiming that the large gas pipeline project requires federal and not provincial approvals. TransCanada has 60 days to apply for leave to appeal.