LNG Canada is gearing up to produce its first LNG in June, Reuters reported on May 5 citing sources familiar with the matter.

Canada’s flagship project has finished the cooldown process of the new plant, with all machinery tested, marking the completion of a critical step in bringing online the new plant in Kitimat, British Columbia.

“The LNG was required for equipment testing and cool down of the facility, which is critical for our commissioning and safe start-up process in advance of operations,” a spokesperson from LNG Canada told Reuters.

The facility began the cooldown phase on April 1 with the arrival of the Maran Gas Roxana tanker. The vessel departed from the plant on May 3.

Before the export terminal begins producing LNG it will carry out flaring until May 15 testing systems, with flare height being between about 20m and 40m.

Once the facility comes online, the export terminal will be capable of producing 14mn tonnes per year (tpy) of LNG. The plant will benefit from its ideal location on Canada’s west coast, which provides a direct shipping route to energy-hungry northeast Asian markets, such as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.

The upcoming launch of the project comes as Canada finds itself in the midst of a heated trade war with the US, which has slapped tariffs on Canadian products. Newly elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney travelled to Washington on May 5 to hold talks with US President Donald Trump in an attempt to smoothen out trade relations.

Canada previously sent all of its gas to the US, exporting about 8.6bn cubic feet (240mn cubic metres) per day of gas to the US in 2024 via pipeline.

However, with the bilateral trade relationship cooling, Ottawa is now searching for new trade partners and is considering building a port in Manitoba at Port Nelson, which would enable Canada to ship LNG to partners in Europe year-round.

LNG Canada is a joint venture between operator Shell as well as Petronas, PetroChina, Mitsubishi Corporation and Kogas.