Canada has a “political accountability” to step up as Russia strangles flows of pure fuel to European allies — and that features a function for Ottawa in advancing a possible East Coast LNG plant, says Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland.
Talking with journalists from Saint John, N.B., on Wednesday, Freeland was requested about whether or not Canada needs to be doing extra to produce European international locations with LNG — liquefied pure fuel — as these international locations quickly cut back their dependence on Russian gas following its invasion in Ukraine.
“I do suppose that power safety right this moment, greater than ever, is a query of safety full-stop and Canada’s actually fortunate. Now we have loads of power. I believe it’s a political accountability for us as a rustic to help our allies with power safety,” Freeland mentioned in response.
“This can be a very robust second for a lot of European international locations proper now as they shift from their dependence from Russian oil and fuel and I believe it’s essential for Canada to step up and say, ‘We’re going that can assist you.’”
She continued: “So sure, I believe there’s a function for the federal authorities working with provincial governments, working with the personal sector, working with our European allies to make this occur.”
On whether or not she backed a plant in Saint John particularly, although, Freeland didn’t say.
“I believe this isn’t the second to choose particular tasks,” she mentioned.
Canadian leaders have lately more and more touted LNG as a extra sustainable and aggressive product for buyers amid a world push to scale back emissions and mitigate local weather change.
However buyers together with Warren Buffet raised issues in 2020 about “the present Canadian context” round LNG, which was broadly interpreted as skepticism concerning the response to rail blockades and protests in opposition to the Coastal GasLink pipeline on the West Coast.
Quick ahead two years, and the worldwide scenario could be very totally different.
Learn extra:
Why is Canada’s turbine return to Russia’s Gazprom fuelling sparks? Right here’s what we all know
Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine sparked huge and ongoing rounds of sanctions focusing on its leaders, monetary establishments and key industries together with oil and fuel.
In response, Russia has choked off pure fuel provides by the Nord Stream 1 pipeline into Europe, and international locations like Germany are actually dealing with the prospect of a winter fuel scarcity.
That pipeline carries some 55 billion cubic metres of pure fuel annually, and Russia has minimize the stream to roughly 20 per cent regardless of the return by Canada of a controversial turbine from the pipeline that had been in Montreal for repairs.
International Affairs Minister Melanie Joly held a press convention along with her German counterpart earlier on Wednesday and described that call as one which “calls Putin’s bluff” and removes any believable excuses for not restoring the stream of fuel by Nord Stream 1.
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