New Enbridge CEO says Canada is missing opportunities as world cries out for energy

'We are a relatively small country from a population perspective, and a giant country from a energy production perspective. So we better figure this out.'

The new CEO of pipeline giant Enbridge Inc. says regulatory uncertainty in this country has resulted in a “lost decade” for Canadian liquefied natural gas production.

Greg Ebel, who took the reins from outgoing Enbridge CEO Al Monaco last month, made the comments in an interview following the release of the company’s fourth-quarter financial results.

Ebel — who was formerly the chief executive of Spectra Energy, which Enbridge acquired in Feb. 2017 — said he was in Ottawa last week speaking to cabinet ministers about the need to accelerate energy infrastructure development in this country.

He pointed out that the U.S. didn’t began exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG) until 2016.

But just over eight years later, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the United States now has more LNG export capacity than any other country and has exported more LNG than any other country.

U.S. LNG exports averaged 11.1 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) during the first half of 2022, according to the EIA, while Canada does not yet have a single LNG export terminal in operation.

“Goodness, that’s an opportunity lost for Canada,” Ebel said, adding Enbridge’s pipelines currently supply natural gas to five operating LNG export facilities on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

He said the company continues to be interested in further acquisitions in the Gulf area that could accelerate its energy export strategy.