TransCanada's wholly-owned subsidiary, NOVA Gas Transmission, has signed agreements with Progress Energy Canada Ltd for approximately 2 Bcf/d (20.6 bcm/year) of firm gas transportation services to underpin the development of a major pipeline extension of the NGTL System.
The proposed North Montney Mainline will consist of two sections, Aitken Creek and Kahta, totaling approximately 305 km in length, and will include an interconnection with TransCanada's proposed Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) project to provide natural gas supply to the proposed Pacific NorthWest LNG export facility near Prince Rupert, B.C. TransCanada anticipates filing an application with the National Energy Board in the fourth quarter of 2013 for approvals to build and operate the facilities. The group expects the Aitken Creek section to be operational in second quarter 2016, the Kahta section in second quarter 2017 and the export delivery facilities in 2019.
Under the commercial arrangements with Progress Energy Canada Ltd, receipt volumes will ramp up between 2016 and 2019 to an aggregate volume of approximately 2 Bcf/d (56 mcm/d) and delivery volumes to the PRGT project will be approximately 2.1 Bcf/d (59 mcm/d) beginning in 2019. NGTL is also in discussions with other parties that have expressed interest in obtaining transportation services that would utilize the North Montney Mainline facilities. The total cost for the North Montney Mainline project is estimated to be approximately C$1.5bn (US$1.4bn).