Ksi Lisims LNG

Ksi Lisims LNG is a proposed 12 million tonne per annum floating LNG export facility on Nisga’a Nation treaty lands at Wil Milit, Pearse Island, in northwest British Columbia. The Nisga’a Nation holds equity ownership in both the facility and the co-owned Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline. Federal and provincial environmental approvals were received in September 2025. A final investment decision has not been taken. As at August 2026, the most recent public statement from the Rockies LNG consortium chair indicates that FID is expected by early 2027. 

Overview 

Ksi Lisims LNG uses floating liquefaction technology, with processing equipment mounted on an offshore platform rather than a land-based terminal, reducing terrestrial and shoreline disturbance. Feed gas would be delivered via the approximately 750-kilometre Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline from the Montney Formation in northeastern BC. Power would be supplied by BC Hydro electricity through the North Coast Transmission Line and the co-owned Nass Valley Regional Transmission Line, with the facility targeting net-zero emissions when fully electrified. 

The project is co-owned by the Nisga’a Nation, Western LNG (a Houston-based developer with investment from Blackstone Energy Transition Partners, affiliates of Jefferies Financial Group, and Transition Equity Partners), and Rockies LNG Partners, a consortium of Canadian natural gas producers. The PRGT pipeline is co-owned 50-50 by the Nisga’a Nation and Western LNG. Ownership percentages for the LNG facility have not been publicly disclosed. 

Sources: Major Projects Office; Western LNG; Global Energy Monitor 

Key Facts 

Development 

A binding letter agreement for Nisga’a Nation and Western LNG to purchase the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline from TC Energy was announced on 14 March 2024. The sale completed at the end of June 2024. Bechtel was retained as pipeline EPC contractor. 

In January 2024, Ksi Lisims signed its first offtake agreement, a 20-year sale and purchase agreement with Shell for 2 million tonnes per annum. In May 2025, TotalEnergies signed a second 20-year SPA for 2 million tonnes per annum and took a 5 per cent equity stake in Western LNG, with an option to own up to 10 per cent of the facility at FID. In September 2025, the project received a federal Decision Statement from the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada and a BC Environmental Assessment Certificate. In November 2025, Prime Minister Carney referred Ksi Lisims to the Major Projects Office under the Building Canada Act alongside the associated North Coast Transmission Line, designating both as nationally significant. 

Capital cost estimates have risen considerably since the project was first proposed. The BC Environmental Assessment Office pegged initial facility capital cost at C$10 to C$12 billion in August 2025. A federal government figure issued in 2026 puts the facility at C$30 billion, excluding the PRGT pipeline. The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis has published an independent benchmark of C$26 billion for the facility. Pipeline costs have roughly doubled from an original estimate of C$5 billion to C$10 to C$12 billion. 

In 2026, the project secured European offtake agreements with Germany’s SEFE (1 million tonne per annum, 20-year heads of agreement, May 2026) and Uniper (2 million tonne per annum, 20-year binding SPA, July 2026). Total contracted volume stands at 7 million tonnes per annum of 12 million tonnes capacity. The proponents have stated they require a further 3 to 4 million tonnes per annum in contracted volume to satisfy lenders. 

Sources: TC Energy; Nisga’a Lisims Government; Ksi Lisims LNG; Globe and Mail 

Development Stage (August 2026) 

Status: Environmental approvals secured; FID pending 

• Federal Decision Statement and BC Environmental Assessment Certificate received, September 2025
• Referred to the Major Projects Office under the Building Canada Act, November 2025
• BC Hydro memorandum of understanding for 600 MW power supply signed, January 2026
• SEFE 20-year heads of agreement for 1 mtpa signed, May 2026
• Benefit agreements signed with Metlakatla First Nation, Lax Kw’alaams Band, and Gitxaala Nation; Metlakatla and Lax Kw’alaams withdrew federal court challenges, June 2026
• Canada-BC Cooperative Prosperity Agreement signed, July 2026
• Uniper 20-year binding SPA for 2 mtpa signed, July 2026
• Gitga’at First Nation benefit agreement signed, July 2026
• Two BC Supreme Court challenges to PRGT “substantial start” determination heard; decisions reserved
• Kitsumkalum First Nation remains in negotiations
• FID now expected early 2027 per Rockies LNG consortium chair 

Sources: Major Projects Office; CBC News; Globe and Mail 

Timeline 

Sources: TC Energy; Major Projects Office; CBC News; Globe and Mail 

Cost Summary 

Capital cost estimates have increased materially since the project was first proposed and remain subject to independent review. 

The federal C$30 billion figure covers the facility only and excludes the PRGT pipeline. The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis has raised concerns about BC Hydro’s capacity to deliver 600 MW on the schedule required, noting that reliance on gas-fired power in the interim would add an estimated C$2 billion in capital cost and approximately 1.8 million tonnes of CO2 per year in emissions.

Sources: Canada’s National Observer; Energeticcity

Regulatory Status 

Ksi Lisims LNG received a federal Decision Statement from the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada and a BC Environmental Assessment Certificate from the BC Environmental Assessment Office in September 2025. The project was referred to the Major Projects Office in November 2025 under the Building Canada Act. The BC Environmental Assessment Office’s approval documentation recorded that consent had not been obtained from several affected First Nations at the time of certification. 

The PRGT pipeline’s environmental assessment certificate was originally issued in 2014 and extended in 2019. In June 2025, the BC Environmental Assessment Office determined the pipeline to be “substantially started,” preserving the certificate’s validity. This determination is the subject of two active BC Supreme Court challenges, heard in April and May 2026, with decisions reserved. 

Sources: Major Projects Office; Globe and Mail; Ecojustice 

Indigenous Participation 

The Nisga’a Nation holds equity ownership in both the Ksi Lisims LNG facility and the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline. The PRGT pipeline is co-owned 50-50 by the Nisga’a Nation and Western LNG. The Nisga’a Final Agreement, BC’s first modern treaty, was signed on 27 May 1998 and came into effect on 11 May 2000, providing fee-simple title over nearly 2,000 square kilometres of land in the Nass River valley and self-government authority. Ownership percentages for the LNG facility have not been publicly disclosed. 

Five First Nations have signed benefit agreements with Ksi Lisims: Kitselas First Nation (May 2025), Metlakatla First Nation, Lax Kw’alaams Band, and Gitxaala Nation (June 2026), and Gitga’at First Nation (July 2026). Metlakatla and Lax Kw’alaams withdrew their federal court challenges against the project in connection with those agreements. Kitsumkalum First Nation remains in negotiations. These are benefit agreements and do not constitute equity participation. 

Sources: Nisga’a Lisims Government; CBC News; Globe and Mail 

Technical Specifications 

• Facility type: Floating LNG, up to two liquefaction structures
• Capacity: Up to 12 million tonnes per annum (22.4 billion cubic metres per year)
• Location: Wil Milit, Pearse Island, approximately 15 kilometres northwest of Gingolx
• Pipeline: Prince Rupert Gas Transmission, approximately 750 kilometres (amended from original 900-kilometre route), Montney Formation to Pearse Island; 42-inch diameter
• Power supply: 600 MW from BC Hydro via the North Coast Transmission Line. The Nass Valley Regional Transmission Line, approximately 120 kilometres including a 15-kilometre underwater portion, is co-owned by Nisga’a Nation and Western LNG
• Emissions: Described by the federal government as approximately 94 per cent below the global average for LNG facilities when electrified; net-zero emissions from start-up when connected to BC Hydro grid 

Sources 

• Major Projects Office, Ksi Lisims LNG project page
• Western LNG, Ksi Lisims LNG project page
• TC Energy, PRGT sale announcement, 14 March 2024
• Nisga’a Lisims Government, PRGT new ownership announcement
• Nisga’a Lisims Government, Treaty page
• Ksi Lisims LNG, Shell SPA announcement, 8 January 2024
• LNG Prime, SEFE heads of agreement, 27 May 2026
• BC Government, SEFE offtake announcement, 27 May 2026
• CBC News, Metlakatla and Lax Kw’alaams withdrawal, 9 June 2026
• Indigenous Business & Finance Today, Gitxaala agreement, 9 June 2026
• Globe and Mail, Gitga’at agreement, July 2026
• Energeticcity, Uniper SPA, 29 July 2026
• Canada’s National Observer, Uniper coverage, 30 July 2026
• Oil & Gas Journal, Major Projects Office designation
• Globe and Mail, SEFE deal and PRGT ownership, 27 May 2026
• Globe and Mail, PRGT court challenge, 5 May 2026
• Ecojustice, PRGT court challenge announcement
• Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs, letter to banks and pension funds, 2 December 2025
• Canada’s National Observer, Major Projects Office referral, 13 November 2025
• Natural Gas Intelligence, FID and offtake, 7 May 2026
• Prince George Citizen, Nass Valley Transmission Line, 30 December 2025
• Global Energy Monitor, Ksi Lisims FLNG Terminal