TC Energy says it has signed option agreements to sell a 10% equity interest in the Coastal GasLink Pipeline Limited Partnership to Indigenous communities across the project corridor.
The company said Wednesday the opportunity to become business partners through equity ownership was made available to all 20 Nations holding existing agreements with Coastal GasLink.
The Nations have established two entities that together currently represent 16 communities who have confirmed their support for the option agreements: CGL First Nations Limited Partnership and the FN CGL Pipeline Limited Partnership.
TC Energy says the formal establishment of these agreements comes from interest expressed by Indigenous groups across the project corridor to become owners in Coastal GasLink alongside Alberta Investment Management Corporation, KKR, and TC Energy.
“For years we have watched industry and governments generate revenues from the operations of their projects, while we live with the impacts,” said Chief Justin Napoleon of Saulteau First Nations, which is a member of the FN CGL Pipeline Limited Partnership.
“This investment in Coastal GasLink will finally start to shift the landscape, aligning industry and Indigenous peoples’ interests over the entire life cycle of a project.”
TC Energy says the equity option is in addition to 20 agreements Coastal GasLink has with Indigenous groups along the pipeline route, which provide opportunities for contracting and employment as well as other long-term benefits.
The equity option is exercisable after commercial in-service of the pipeline, subject to customary regulatory approvals and consents, including the consent of LNG Canada.
“We are proud to advance our relationships with the Indigenous communities across the route through equity ownership in Coastal GasLink,” said TC Energy President and CEO François Poirier.
“Together, as business partners, we have the opportunity to learn, grow and change the way energy is developed in Canada. This is one of the ways we can advance reconciliation.”
