B.C.ers are bullish on LNG, bearish on the government’s handling: exclusive poll

Kitimat LNG | BCBusiness

Despite muted expectations, LNG holds promise for most B.C.ers

Compared to the LNG-fueled promises of the last provincial election, 2014 was a rough year for B.C.’s nascent liquified natural gas industry. A dip in oil prices led project proponents, like Petronas and U.S.-based Apache, to postpone their investments or pull out entirely. Meanwhile, the provincial government halved the rate of one of its future taxes on the industry, jeopardizing the election promise of a $100-billion prosperity fund. 

But overall, British Columbians remain fairly confident that LNG will play a big role in B.C.’s economic future, or so concluded a poll conducted by market research firm Insights West on attitudes toward LNG on behalf of BCBusiness (as part of our recent package on pipelines). A total of 802 British Columbian adults responded to our field survey between October 3 and October 8. The results have a 3.5 per cent margin of error.