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EnCana Approves $700 Million Deep Panuke Gas Project Off N.S.

Posted on: Thursday, 25 October 2007, 15:00 CDT

By THE CANADIAN PRESS

HALIFAX - EnCana Corp (TSX:ECA) announced Thursday that it will proceed with the Deep Panuke natural gas project off Nova Scotia, giving fresh hope to an offshore industry that has stalled in the province in recent years.

The board of directors at the Calgary-based company made the decision at a meeting Wednesday following weeks of speculation over the fate of the $700-million development.

Premier Rodney MacDonald praised the highly anticipated decision, saying it will bring in millions in royalties, create jobs and renew interest in the faltering sector.

"It's extremely important because it sends a message that the offshore in Nova Scotia is alive and well," he said just hours after getting the news.

"We're going to see over 1.3 million person hours of work, hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties and it will showcase the futre of the offshore for Nova Scotia."

The project, on the Scotian Shelf about 250 kilometres southeast of Halifax, is expected to start production in 2010.

It's expected to deliver between 200 million and 300 million cubic feet of natural gas per day to markets in Canada and the northeast United States.

After more than seven years of analysis by the company, the Deep Panuke project quickly passed all regulatory hurdles, clearing the way for the company to begin lining up subcontractors.

"I think it's going to spark more activity in our offhore," said Energy Minister Richard Hurlburt. "It puts Nova Scotia more in the limelight for our offshore gas and oil."

The project would begin pumping gas in a few years as the rate of production in the Sable Offshore Energy Project wells, operated by ExxonMobil, is expected to slow.

Source: Canadian Press

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