Quebec would be able to supply Germany with natural gas in as short a time as 16 to 18 months, assures the president of Utica Resources, who urges the Quebec government to abandon its bill that would ban exploration and exploitation of oil and gas.
Posted at 4:14 p.m.
“We have been in a different world since February 24, argues Mario Lévesque, president and CEO of Utica Resources. The planet has changed. If the government passes Bill 21 in its current form, the province will leave Europe to its fate”.
According to him, Quebec can and must help Europe diversify its natural gas supply sources. “And it could be done very quickly, within 16 to 18 months,” he estimates.
To respond as quickly as possible to the needs of Germany, whose economy is most dependent on Russian gas, it is possible to ship Quebec natural gas in compressed rather than liquid form. “Once compressed, the gas can travel in containers and be injected directly into the network once at its destination,” explains Mario Lévesque.
Liquid natural gas, by comparison, would require the construction of liquefaction facilities in Quebec and regasification once it reaches Europe, which is long and costly.
Utica Resources claims to be in discussions with representatives of the German government, which is very interested in the Quebec solution, says its president.
Mario Lévesque believes that it is possible that the Quebec government will postpone its bill. A survey conducted by the firm Mainstream commissioned by Utica Resources indicates that 65% of Quebecers are “very in agreement” and “somewhat in agreement” with the idea of exploiting our natural gas resources to create wealth and finance the transition. energy. A small majority of respondents, or 52%, said they were of the opinion that in the current context of the energy crisis, the government should suspend its bill to ban the exploration and exploitation of oil and gas.
“I would find it sad if he didn’t change his mind,” said Mario Lévesque. We have an obligation to intervene to stabilize world peace. »
In Becancour
Tens of billions of dollars in private funds could be invested quickly to drill wells in the St. Lawrence Lowlands and find container ships to transport it to Europe, according to Utica Resources.
Natural gas production could be concentrated in the Bécancour industrial park, located in the middle of the shales (shales) rich in natural gas.
The resources in place in the St. Lawrence Lowlands are estimated at 180 TCF (trillion cubic feet), of which 60 TCF are recoverable. Mario Lévesque believes that it is “very reasonable” to believe that it is possible to produce 1 BFC (trillion cubic feet) of natural gas at Bécancour as of next winter and to increase this production to 1 TCF per year within a three-year horizon. Quebec could thus provide 20% of European consumption, estimated at 5 TCF per year.
“Even if the war led by the Russians in Ukraine ends tomorrow morning, Europe needs new suppliers,” he underlines.
The transport distance is shorter between Quebec and Europe than that of other potential suppliers, such as Qatar and the United States, points out Mario Lévesque.
According to him, natural gas can help the world make a transition to renewable energy, and Quebec has it. Banning oil and gas exploration and production for environmental reasons, when we continue to consume oil that comes from elsewhere, is hypocrisy, he believes.