By Jeff Stagl, Managing Editor
A CN customer at the Port of Prince Rupert in British Columbia is advancing a plan to redevelop a portion of its coal facilities into a liquified petroleum gas (LPG) export operation.
In November, Trigon Pacific Terminals Ltd. unveiled the “Trigon Pacific LPG Project,” which is designed to foster a more diversified and open LPG supply chain and create additional export capacity for the gas without the need to develop land or build a dedicated berth at the port.
Privately owned, Trigon is a multi-commodity bulk and liquefied gas export terminal at the port. Established in 1978 as Ridley Terminals Inc., the terminal serves as an export point for vast reserves of metallurgical and thermal coal in northern British Columbia and Alberta.
Since a Canadian ban on thermal coal exports will begin in 2030, the company needs to take advantage of its available terminal capacity and infrastructure, and experience with handling propane, Trigon leaders say. A flammable mixture of hydrocarbon gases — including propane, propylene and butylene — LPG is used as a fuel source for heating appliances, cooking equipment and vehicles, and as a refrigerant or aerosol propellant.
The new LPG operation will offer Canadian propane producers a low-cost export opportunity while maintaining steelmaking coal export volumes, Trigon officials stress.
The Trigon Pacific LPG Project calls for using the coal terminal’s existing rail yard and establishing new rail unloading facilities for unit trains. The company’s facility currently is served by CN via its northern rail corridor and the Class I will also serve the new LPG export operation, said Trigon spokesperson Nicola Lambrechts in an email. CN is the only railroad that serves the Prince Rupert port, which is the closest major North American port to Asia.
Canada’s impending ban on thermal coal exports is a primary reason Trigon aims to redevelop a portion of its coal facilities into an LPG export operation at the port. Trigon Pacific Terminals Ltd. The project also involves creating LPG storage areas and leveraging LPG vessel loading infrastructure at the port.
Preliminary design work has been completed on the project. Trigon now is advancing engineering work, including rail infrastructure design and risk assessment planning. That work is anticipated to be completed in second-quarter 2024, said Lambrechts.
Pending regulatory and other approvals, Trigon expects to launch the LPG export operation by late 2027. Construction is estimated to take about two years to complete.
Since the company will be repurposing existing land that currently hosts coal-handling activities and will use existing marine infrastructure, the LPG operation’s potential impacts will be significantly less than a greenfield project, said Trigon CEO Rob Booker in an email.
“The project would require approval from the Prince Rupert Port Authority, as well as consultation with indigenous and local communities,” he said. “As part of this, we have commenced legal action against the port authority to enforce its lease rights and are confident the matter will be resolved in our favor.”
Trigon will have the smallest environmental footprint of any proposed LPG export facility in Canada and will provide cost-competitive export access for Canadian propane producers, according to the company.
Trigon’s current bulk export facility can load metallurgical or thermal coal and petroleum coke. It has an annual throughput capacity of 18 million metric tons.
In May, Trigon contracted PPM Civil Constructors to build a second berth at the port. To be completed in 2027, it will be Canada’s first purpose-built infrastructure for handling low-carbon energy exports — such as ammonia and hydrogen — that are used for fuel, company officials say.
Canada is well-positioned to supply the Asia-Pacific region with emerging fuels, which is why the company’s terminal needs to be transformed into a low-carbon energy export hub, Trigon officials say.
