Lexpert®Ranked Lawyers
Hudec, Albert J.
Farris, Vaughan, Wills
& Murphy LLP
(604) 661-9356
ahudec@farris.com
Mr. Hudec's
corporate fi nance and
securities practice
focuses on cross-
border M&A, public
equity and venture
capital fi nancing,
and board and
independent committee
representation,
with emphasis on
the resource and
technology industries.
Hull, Robert G.S.
Gowling Lafl eur
Henderson LLP
(416) 369-7313
robert.hull@gowlings.
com
Mr. Hull is a partner in
corporate commercial
and securities law,
specializing in
Fund Formation for
infrastructure and
real estate funds. Bob
represents numerous
domestic and
international business
concerns active in
the Canadian energy
sector.
Hurst, Michael A.
Dentons Canada LLP
(403) 268-3046
michael.hurst@
dentons.com
Mr. Hurst's energy law
expertise embraces
oil and gas upstream,
midstream and pipeline
acquisitions; structuring
greenfi eld projects;
fi nancing; and product
sales arrangements.
He works on
infrastructure projects
in Canada and South
America.
Hughes, QC,
Terrance M.
Norton Rose Fulbright
Canada LLP
(403) 267-8117
terry.hughes@
nortonrosefulbright.
com
Mr. Hughes's project
development practice
for domestic and
foreign clients
embraces oil, gas
and NGL pipelines;
processing, refi ning
and cogeneration
facilities; offshore gas
and integrated oil
sands projects; and he
also appears before
the NEB.
Hurley, John
Gowling Lafl eur
Henderson LLP
(514) 392-9431
john.hurley@
gowlings.com
Mr. Hurley has
extensive experience
in commercial law, with
special emphasis on
First Nations, energy
and infrastructure,
environmental law and
regulatory matters.
Ignasiak, Martin
Osler, Hoskin &
Harcourt LLP
(403) 260-7007
mignasiak@osler.com
Mr. Ignasiak appears
in courts and tribunals
in his regulatory and
environmental law
practice. He advises
on oil sands, electric
generation and mining
facilities approvals.
He also advises on
Aboriginal issues
and impact benefi t
agreements.
LNG | 25
While the world undergoes an LNG boom, industry
watchers suggest if the oil and gas majors don't lay their chips
down by the end of 2014, Canada will lose the bet on de-
veloping an export LNG sector in British Columbia against
other nations.
Several countries, Qatar and Australia in particular, have
surged far ahead of Canada in developing LNG export fa-
cilities to feed energy-hungry Asian markets. Qatar is the
world's leading LNG exporter. But Australia, which current-
ly has three operating LNG terminals and seven more under
construction, could overtake Qatar this decade. Meanwhile
in BC a handful of dozers have been levelling dirt for pos-
sible construction of a Chevron Canada and Apache Corp.
joint venture, the Kitimat LNG project. But that's about it
in Canada so far.
e United States, rapidly reversing existing plants once
used to import and de-liquefy natural gas, also leads Canada,
which won't have an operational LNG export plant until at
least 2018.
Australia, Qatar and the US have locked up long-term
LNG supply contracts to Asian countries such as Malaysia,
South Korea and India that Canada has now missed out
on. Meanwhile, the once touted economic prospects of a
Canadian LNG industry have witnessed erosion in just a
few short years. When fracking spurred a huge increase in
North American natural gas production, the resulting sur-
plus depressed domestic prices to the $2 and $3 a-million-
British-thermal units (MMBTu) range. Meanwhile, Japan
was paying four or fi ve times those prices. It was that rela-
tively consistent price diff erential that got the energy indus-
try thinking about investing billions to develop a Canadian
LNG export industry.
But natural gas prices in North America have risen recent-
ly. In June, the average spot price for North American gas was
US $4.56 per MMBTu. Couple that with eff orts by LNG
buyers in Asian markets to reduce the price they pay for gas
and the price gap narrows, and so do the economic prospects
for a North American LNG industry. Last year, spurred by
Japan, the world's number one LNG importer, Asian buyers
there and in India, South Korea, China and Taiwan formed
buyers clubs in a bid to force LNG prices down.
Despite growing skepticism surrounding a future Canadi-
an LNG industry, Tom Valentine remains a strong believer.
Few Canadian corporate lawyers have waded into the rapidly
evolving LNG sector quite as deeply as Valentine. In 2002,
