The BC Government announced at the beginning of February that it would be fast-tracking 18 natural resources projects in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs, but it is unclear what the government is doing to speed up the mining and some of the energy projects on its list.
On Feb. 1, Premier David Eby’s office issued a media release outlining BC’s response to Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods, two days before Trump announced one-month reprieve for both countries.
Those measures included ordering BC Liquor to stop buying liquor from “red states” and remove them from its retail shelves and directing the provincial government and Crown corporations to prioritize Canadian goods and services.
Both of these actions were paused when Trump announced his one-month pause.
The release also indicatedthe government is “is assessing private-sector projects worth $20 billion with the goal of getting them approved as quickly as possible and issuing their permits faster.”
“These are expected to create 6,000 jobs in remote and rural communities. In addition, the province has vowed to support and help implement the actions being taken by the federal government,” the release said.
The release did not state what projects were under consideration as part of this endeavour, but The Citizen received a list of 18 projects from a spokesperson from Eby’s office later that same week.
The list is divided into three sections, “clean energy,” “energy security” and “critical minerals.”
The clean energy section is comprised of projects the province had already announced it was moving forward, eight wind power projects, one solar power project and the North Coast transmission line.
Announced in December, the wind projects are all co-owned by BC First Nations, including one by Lheidli T’enneh First Nation and Spanish renewable energy company Ecoener. The government is allowing these projects and future wind projects to bypass the environmental assessment process.
At the BC Natural Resources Forum in Prince George back in January, Premier David Eby announced that his government would introduce legislation later this year that would grant the BC Energy Regulator sole permitting authority for the North Coast transmission line, which will twin the existing 500-kilovolt, 450-kilometre line from Prince George to Terrace.
This, he told the forum audience, would help the transmission lines get built sooner and help future natural resource and infrastructure projects dependent on that power to get off the ground more quickly.
On Feb. 6, Energy and Climate Solutions Minister Adrian Dix announced that the legislation would also place future wind and solar projects under the purview of the BC Energy Regulator as well.
“Along with other natural resources projects, these critical projects have been identified by the Province as priorities that are ready to move forward, with the potential to generate significant employment to support our economy in the face of potential tariffs by the U.S. government,” Dix said in a media release.
However, other than referencing how the transmission line could help new natural resource projects get off the ground more quickly, Dix’s release did not address the original release’s assertion that the government would get the energy security and critical mineral projects off the ground.
The critical mineral projects are:
- Eskay Creek gold and silver mine by Skeena Gold + Silver near Stewart
- Highland Valley copper and molybdenum mine expansion by Teck near Logan Lake
- Red Creek copper and gold mine expansion by Newmont near Stewart
- Mount Milligan copper and gold mine by Centerra Gold near Fort St. James
The energy security projects are:
- Cedar LNG near Kitimat
- Northeast BC Connector by NorthRiver Midstream near Fort St. John
- T-North natural gas pipeline by Enbridge near Fort Nelson
The Citizen asked the government over several days what it was doing to speed up these seven projects but did not receive a response. Only four of the seven companies whose projects were on the government’s list responded to emails requesting comment.
The Mount Milligan mine has been in production since 2014, said Centerra Gold vice-president of external affairs Karina Briño.
“We are encouraged by province’s approach to streamline the permitting process for our Mount Milligan operations going forward,” Briño said. “We expect to submit an amendment application in the coming months for permits and expansions related to our ongoing operations. We anticipate a streamlined process with these permits and are committed to collaborating with the province to ensure a successful result.”
On top of that, Briño said Centerra is studying whether it can extend past the mine’s current operational life and it plans to publish an update on that front last this year.
The project was ordered by the province in July 2024 to reduce the risk of wildlife-human interactions after a March inspection “found concerns with the management of wastes that may attract wildlife.”
Dale Steeves, the director of stakeholder relations for Teck, said that Highland Valley is Canada’s largest copper mine and the company is looking for an extension to keep it operating until the mid-2040s.
“The HVC Mine Life Extension Project is undergoing an environmental assessment under the B.C. Environmental Assessment Act,” Steeves said. “We expect a decision from the (BC Environmental Assessment Office) in mid-2025.
“Proceeding with the extension would mean an estimated US$1.3 billion to $1.4 billion capital investment and is expected to create about 2,900 jobs during the construction phase of the project.
“HVC MLE would allow for the continuation of social and economic benefits of the mine, including supporting over 1,300 direct jobs and an average $490 million in annual GDP, and produce 1.95 million tonnes of copper over the life of the mine.”
Steeves added that the project has received support from the Citxw Nlaka’pamux Assembly, Lower Nicola Indian Band and the Kanaka Bar Indian Band.
However, the BC government’s site for environmental assessment shows that Stk’emlupsemc te Secwépemc Nation referred the project to the dispute resolution process due to significant differences between the nation’s assessment of the project and the Environmental Assessment Office’s.
Under the 2018 Environmental Assessment Act, Indigenous nations can refer matters relating to their right to be consulted, a minister’s decision to terminate or exempt a project from environmental assessment, a decision made by chief executive assessment officer, the planning process carried out by the chief executive assessment officer, a project’s effects assessment or a decision regarding an environmental assessment certificate application to a dispute resolution facilitator.
By email, NorthRiver Midstream manager of Indigenous and community relations David Markham referred to the company’s webpage for the NEBC Connector and said the information it contained was the extent to which they can comment at this time.
The page says that the project consists of two parallel, small-diameter pipelines stretching 213 kilometres from northwest of Wonowon, BC to western Alberta, carrying natural gas liquids and condensate.
A timeline on that page says that BC granted approval to the project on Jan. 17 and Alberta on Jan. 31.
As for its current status, the page states “NorthRiver is continuing to work in partnership with customers, partners, regulatory authorities and Indigenous groups to continue to progress this important project towards a positive final investment decision.”
Construction is currently expected to be complete by the second quarter of 2027. In April 2024, the Environmental Assessment Office issued the project a warning after an inspection found it had “failed to submit necessary reports to the EAO within the given timeframe.”
Enbridge strategist for corporate communications and media relations Jesse Semko said in a statement that the company is looking to start construction on the pipeline by the second quarter of 2025 and start operating it in the fourth quarter of 2026.
The project’s website states that the project consists of 18 kilometres of new pipeline segments in northeast BC “to serve growing regional demand for natural gas and potential west coast LNG exports.”
It received regulatory approval from the federal Canada Energy Regulator on Dec. 19, 2024.
“Some of the provincial permits that either remain or will be required to advance this natural gas transmission project relate to road and land access, tree clearing, as well as wildlife monitoring and protection. The timely approval of these permits will help to ensure this project remains on track to hitting its targeted in-service date,” Semko’s statement said.
Cedar LNG bills itself as “the world’s first Indigenous majority-owned LNG project.” Located southwest of Kitimat, the floating facility will take natural gas, cool it to the point where it becomes a liquid and then load it onto ships in Douglas Channel for transport to Asia once it is operations.
BC Environmental Assessment Office information states that Cedar received an environmental assessment certificate in March 2023. However, the company has applied for some changes to the project and a public comment period is currently open until Feb. 27.
Formerly an underground gold and silver mine around 250 kilometres north of Stewart, Skeena Gold + Silver is trying to revive the Eskay Creek site as an open pit mine. The project’s website says it is in the environmental assessment application stage and hopes to start operating by 2027.
A public comment period for the mine’s environmental assessment certificate application closed on Nov. 14, 2024. Seven people completed a survey during the comment period.
About 300 kilometres northeast of Stewart, Red Chris is a gold and copper mine co-owned by Australian firm Newmont that has operated since 2015. According to the province, Newmont applied last year to convert the open pit mine into an underground operation using block cave methods.
A public comment period will be held sometime this year.
The mine was censured by the province twice last year, once in July after an inspection found spilled fossil fuels near an explosive storage building and another time in August for pumping water out of a diversion ditch and into a tailings impoundment area contrary to the conditions of its environmental certificate.
Newmont, Cedar and Skeena did not respond to requests for comment.
