The Canadian export credit agency Export Development Canada (EDC) plans to lend between CAD250m (US$179m) and CAD500m (US$359m) to TC Energy to build the Coastal GasLink, a 670-km long gas pipeline linking the Western Canadian basin in northeast British Columbia to the West Coast around Kitimat (BC), where the shipped gas will be liquefied at the Shell-led LNG Canada project. Coastal GasLink took a final investment decision on the pipeline in October 2018 and the project broke ground in early 2019 with commissioning expected in 2023. The gas pipeline project would have an initial capacity of 2.1 bcf/d (59 mcm/d or 21.5 bcm/year), which could later be expanded to 5 bcf/d (141 mcm/d or 51 bcm/year). A banking pool is expected to fund the majority of the CAD6.6bn (US$4.7bn) project’s construction cost. The project is opposed by First Nations tribes.
The Canadian energy infrastructure group TC Energy is also building the US$8bn Keystone XL Pipeline, which will transport 830,000 bbl/d of Alberta oil sands (Canada) through Steele City in Nebraska (United States) to the Mexico Gulf coast refiners over an 1,897 km route. In addition to a US$1.1bn investment as equity in the project from the Government of Alberta, the oil pipeline will be funded through the combination of a US$4.2bn loan to be fully guaranteed by the Government of Alberta and a US$2.7bn investment by TC Energy.