From the WSJ:
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia–Petroliam Nasional Bhd., Malaysia’s state-run oil and gas company, said Wednesday it is in talks with four potential partners from Japan and the Middle East for stakes in its Canadian liquefied-natural-gas project.
The potential partners are conducting due diligence, Petronas Chief ExecutiveShamsul Azhar Abbas said. He declined to name the companies involved in the discussion.
…The terminal could begin operating as soon as 2018 and will have the capacity to export 12 million metric tons of LNG a year aimed at Asian markets.
Existing partners include China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, Japan Petroleum Exploration Co, Indian Oil Corp and Brunei National Petroleum Co. Final investment decision is in December. The project is estimated to cost $16 billion including its pipeline. Comparison with any Australian project costs is enlightening given Gorgon will deliver 15mtpa for $54 billion, Wheatstone 9mtpa for $29 billionand QCLNG 8.5mtpa for $21 billion.
Even accounting for the inevitable cost blowouts, Canada looks attractive on a capital cost basis. Of course, that says nothing about the relative merits of ongoing extraction margins, maritime gas will be cheaper to produce once the infrastructure is place, but you get the idea. I expect this project to go ahead.
