Clarke Gives Up BC To China

Selling gas: Christy Clark leads LNG business mission to China

 

 

BY CASSIDY OLIVIER, THE PROVINCE NOVEMBER 22, 2013

 

 

 

B.C. Premier Christy Clark last week announces a new LNG export facility to be built near Prince Rupert.

Photograph by: Ward Perrin , PNG

Premier Christy Clark on Thursday embarked on a large scale trade mission to Asia where she will meet with government officials and resource industry heavyweights from three different countries in a bid to strike new business deals and promote B.C.’s liquid natural gas (LNG) ambitions.

The tour, Clark’s fourth since becoming premier, includes a delegation of some 120 companies and organizations. Clark’s first stop will be Beijing, where she will tour an LNG facility and also meet with senior Chinese government officials and business executives.

“Trade missions are an important way to share B.C.’s competitive advantages with our international partners, so that B.C. businesses and communities share in the benefits,” Clark said in a statement. “As we develop LNG and seize economic development in every corner of the province, these partnerships and strategic outreach will mean more economic growth and jobs here at home.”

Teresa Wat, the minister of international trade, will accompany Clark on the trade mission, which will wrap up on Dec. 3. While Wat will remain in China for the duration of the tour, Clark will also make stops in Korea and Japan.

Another goal of the mission will be to try and entice Asian corporations to base their North American operations in B.C., according to a government statement.

Clark campaigned on a promise to create thousands of jobs and bring trillions of dollars to B.C.’s economy through the creation of a LNG industry. Critics, however, say Clark has oversold the economic windfalls as well as B.C.’s ability to compete in a tight market.

Critics have also pointed to the environmental impacts of an LNG industry, with one recent report suggesting that the needed plants will dramatically increase B.C.’s carbon footprint and exceed current emission targets.