Canada's Pieridae Energy hires MUFG as SocGen exits over emissions worries
31/05/2021 06:00
(Repeats May 28 story without change)
* Japan's MUFG to replace Societe Generale on Canadian LNG
Project
* Pieridae Energy says MUFG 'a better fit' for gas
development
* Final investment decision on project may come in weeks
By Sabrina Valle and Simon Jessop
RIO DE JANEIRO/LONDON, May 28 (Reuters) - Canada's Pieridae
Energy Ltd PEA.TO has hired Japanese lender MUFG Bank to help
raise $10 billion for its proposed Goldboro liquefied natural
gas (LNG) export plant in Nova Scotia, it told Reuters on
Thursday.
The decision to hire a new banker came after Societe
Generale SA SOGN.PA , its previous financial advisor, committed
to phasing out of new shale financing on environmental grounds.
Societe Generale confirmed it had stopped providing support
to both Goldboro and a separate project, Quebec LNG, to limit
exposure to shale oil and gas production in North America by
2023.
Historically a backer of LNG projects, SocGen's departure
further reduces investment options for a dozen North American
LNG projects still requiring financing. Royal Bank of Scotland
and HSBC also have tightened restrictions on lending for
high-carbon energy projects.
Pieridae separately said it will develop a carbon capture
and sequestration facility in Alberta that would fully offset
the Goldboro project's carbon footprint.
The planned complex echoes similar efforts by LNG processors
to meet increasing customer demand for environmental, social and
governance (ESG) measures.
"Without a concrete, measurable ESG plan nothing is
financeable these days," Pieridae's Chief Executive Officer
Alfred Sorensen told Reuters. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N2NE26I
Pieridae said the backing by MUFG and the carbon capture
facility could help the 10 million tonnes per annum LNG project
achieve a final investment decision (FID) by June 30.
It has become more difficult to raise funds for North
American energy projects due to the uncertainty of local
regulatory processes, Pieridae spokesman James Millar said, with
state-owned national oil companies filling the gap instead.
"North America (is) losing out on energy development
opportunities," Millar said.
"There is going to be a lot of projects that are likely not
going to be built," Poten & Partners forecasting manager Kristen
Holmquist said during a recent webinar.
In its "Road map to net zero emissions by 2050 https://www.iea.org/reports/net-zero-by-2050
" report earlier this month, the International Energy Agency
said many of the liquefaction facilities currently under
construction or at the planning stage would not be needed.
(Reporting by Sabrina Valle in Rio de Janeiro, Simon Jessop in
London and Scott DiSavino in New York; editing by David Evans)
((Sabrina.Valle@thomsonreuters.com;))