Poilievre promises binding LNG supply deals with Europe and to 'override' governments blocking energy projects

BERLIN — Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre promised a Conservative government would sign binding supply agreements with European allies such as Germany to supply them with natural gas while “overriding bureaucracies and other levels of government” to speed up building pipelines and LNG terminals.

Poilievre delivered a speech Wednesday in Berlin that alternated between a full-throated promotion of Canadian liquefied natural gas (LNG) and critical mineral exports and a campaign-style series of commitments if he is one day elected prime minister.

Poilievre is currently on his first ever international mission as Conservative leader since taking over the position in 2022.

Speaking to roughly 50 attendees at an event hosted by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the Conservative leader argued that Germany should turn to Canada, a stable ally who believes in the rule of law, for its natural gas and critical mineral imports.

But to do so, he said that Canada needs to develop its natural gas sector quickly and promised to “override” other levels of government to do so if necessary.

“My government will use the constitutional and legal powers necessary to pre-permit right of ways for pipelines and LNG liquefaction terminals,” he said.

“We will override bureaucracies and other levels of government if needed to get projects approved and under construction,” he added.

The comment is likely to raise eyebrows among certain provincial and Indigenous leaders who have previously opposed such development on their territory.

Poilievre has previously said that “one man can’t block a project” after B.C. Premier David Eby raised numerous concerns about a potential pipeline being built from Alberta to the northern B.C. coast.

Poilievre also repeated his promise that major project permitting times would be capped at six months if he is elected prime minister. Increased natural gas production and export would allow Canada to sign binding supply agreements with allies such as Germany, the Conservative leader said.

“A supply agreement for natural gas that will require our government rapidly approve liquefaction facilities and pipelines to supply you with a predictable, low cost source of natural gas in the future,” he told event attendees, including Germany’s Secretary of State at the Ministry of Energy and Economic Affairs Stefan Rouenhoff.

When building major projects like liquefied natural gas plants, companies will often sign long-term supply agreements as a way to lock in customers, often through contracts spanning many years.

Countries like Japan, Germany and others have increasingly sought to sign such agreements in light of energy security worries following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has countries seeking to secure strategic natural gas supplies.

Poilievre lightly criticized European countries such as Germany for relying too long on cheap Russian gas, becoming dependent on a country that would become a foe after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

“For years, cheap gas lulled Europe into a false sense of comfort. The price seemed low, the risk seemed distant, until it wasn’t. Russia invaded Ukraine, the bill came due,” he said.

Over 50 people attended Poilievre’s speech hosted the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a right-leaning thinktank named after the founder of the governing Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party to which it is associated. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz leads the CDU.

He then participated in a panel with two CDU MPs, Rouenhoff and Jürgen Hardt.

During his first stop in London, he met with numerous U.K. Conservative MPs — including party leader Kemi Badenoch — as well as business leaders, according to posts on his social media account. His office has so far declined to provide a list of individuals he met.

He also delivered two speeches to conservative groups in which he argued for a new trading block between Canada, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand (called CANZUK).

National Post, with files from Jesse Snyder.

National Post

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