I’m now writing as Amara Deschamps, the journalist with expertise in climate policy and cultural perspectives.
The shoreline at Kitimat stretches out like a promise. Snow-capped mountains frame the horizon where tankers now regularly pull into the newly expanded port facilities, carrying liquefied natural gas bound for European shores. What was once a contentious proposal has become a bustling reality.
“We’re operating at 118% of our projected capacity,” says Marissa Chen, operations director at Pacific Northwest LNG, as we tour the facility on a rare sunny February morning. “The demand signals from overseas have completely transformed our growth trajectory.”
Canada’s natural gas export industry has undergone a dramatic evolution since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 first triggered Europe’s urgent search for alternative energy sources. Three years later, that initial crisis response has evolved into something unexpected – a sustained boom driven by Europe’s soaring energy demands to power artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The numbers tell a compelling story. Natural Resources Canada reports that LNG exports to the European Union increased by 78% in the past year alone, with Germany and Poland now accounting for nearly 40% of all Canadian LNG shipments. This represents a significant shift in Canada’s export relationships, which historically prioritized Asian markets.
“We initially ramped up production as a temporary response to the Ukraine crisis,” explains Thomas Baker, energy economist at the University of Calgary. “Nobody predicted the sustained growth we’re seeing now, especially from the AI sector.”
Behind this surge lies Europe’s rapidly expanding network of data centers. These energy-intensive facilities house the computing power necessary for training and running artificial intelligence systems, from consumer-facing applications like ChatGPT to specialized industrial systems. A typical mid-sized data center can consume as much electricity as a small town.
Walking along Kitimat’s waterfront, I meet Jamie Hill, a Haisla Nation member who works as an environmental compliance officer at the terminal. His perspective bridges worlds – traditional Indigenous values and modern economic realities.
“Our community debated this project for years,” he tells me, gesturing toward the facility where super-cooled natural gas is loaded onto specialized tankers. “There are still mixed feelings. The jobs and revenue sharing agreements have brought opportunities, but there are legitimate concerns about what this means for our traditional territories and climate commitments.”
Those climate concerns echo throughout conversations with environmental scientists. The European Commission’s climate policy unit published findings last month showing that data center energy consumption across the EU has risen 27% annually since 2023, outpacing the deployment of renewable energy infrastructure and leading to increased reliance on gas imports.
“We’re seeing the climate and technology challenges collide in real time,” says Dr. Amina Santos, climate policy researcher at the University of British Columbia. “Europe made ambitious commitments to decarbonization, but the explosion of AI has created energy demands that their renewables sector simply can’t meet fast enough. Natural gas has become the bridging solution.”
For Canadian producers, this unexpected demand represents both a windfall and a dilemma. The federal government’s climate targets include significant emissions reductions by 2030, targets that become more challenging as production increases. Environment and Climate Change Canada recently acknowledged this tension in their quarterly emissions forecast, noting that “export-driven production growth presents complex challenges to domestic climate commitments.”
Back in Ottawa, the political calculus is equally complicated. Parliamentary transcripts from recent natural resources committee meetings reveal a government attempting to balance climate obligations with economic opportunities in regions where resource development remains central to prosperity.
“We can’t ignore the economic benefits this export growth brings to communities like Kitimat and Fort Nelson,” says Energy Minister Samantha Reynolds in a phone interview. “At the same time, we’re investing heavily in emissions-reduction technologies for the sector and accelerating our hydrogen strategy.”
The hydrogen question looms large in Canada’s energy future. The federal government has positioned Canada to become a leading exporter of blue hydrogen – produced from natural gas with carbon capture – and eventually green hydrogen derived from renewable electricity. Yet the timeline for this transition stretches well beyond current export opportunities.
For communities along the gas production and transportation corridor, the boom brings immediate changes. In Fort St. John, where much of British Columbia’s natural gas is produced, housing prices have risen 23% in two years according to the Canadian Real Estate Association. Schools report enrollment surges as families move to the region for high-paying energy sector jobs.
“It’s like whiplash,” says Darren Moffat, a third-generation resident who runs a local hardware store. “Five years ago, people were leaving because the industry was struggling. Now we can’t build houses fast enough.”
The environmental footprint of this production boom extends beyond carbon emissions. Water usage for hydraulic fracturing has increased substantially, and although regulations have tightened, environmental monitoring reports from the BC Oil and Gas Commission document ongoing challenges with methane leakage from production facilities.
As I leave Kitimat on a small coastal ferry, I watch the LNG facility recede into the distance. A massive tanker edges toward the terminal, emblazoned with the logo of a European energy conglomerate. The vessel will carry enough natural gas to power a mid-sized European city – or perhaps its growing cluster of data centers – for weeks.
The story of Canada’s surging gas exports to Europe reveals something essential about our moment: the intersection of geopolitics, technological revolution, and climate challenges creates unexpected dependencies and difficult choices. As artificial intelligence reshapes economies and societies, its material footprint – measured partly in cubic meters of Canadian natural gas – reminds us that even our most advanced technologies remain tethered to the physical world and its finite resources.
