Pacific Northern Gas (PNG) has withdrawn its request to spend close to $5 million on gas plant improvements to the Tumbler Ridge gas plant.
While PNG has stated in the past these repairs are “Critical,” on February 18, they submitted a letter to the BC Utilities Commission (BCUC) to withdraw that request, which the commission agreed to on February 21.
According to PNG, they are withdrawing the application because they have not yet reached an agreement with its gas supplier regarding an alternate gas supply arrangement, and is uncertain whether agreement can be reached in a timely manner. “As a result, PNG cannot assess the prudence and commercial viability of moving forward with the proposal presented in the Application,” they write in their letter.
“Consequently, PNG(NE) lacks sufficient confidence in its future gas supply to justify the proposed investment in the Tumbler Ridge Gas Plant at present.”
They say the work planned for this year would need to start “imminently” to meet the proposed timeline. “Given the current uncertainty, PNG is not prepared to begin this work at this time. PNG is continuing to reassess its gas supply options for the Tumbler Ridge service area and will submit any appropriate applications to the BCUC when it believes an application is warranted.”
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
