Polish envoy presses Canada to send LNG direct to Europe, cut U.S. middleman

Poland’s ambassador to Canada says Canadian natural gas is reaching Europe at inflated prices after being sold at a discounted rate to the United States – a problem he hopes Ottawa will fix.

Source: Shuttershock

Poland’s ambassador to Canada says Canadian natural gas is reaching Europe at inflated prices after being sold at a discounted rate to the United States – a problem he hopes Ottawa will fix by boosting liquefied natural gas exports directly to European countries.

Ambassador Witold Dzielski told CBC’s Power & Politics that Poland remains “constantly interested” in Canadian LNG and wants to see infrastructure on Canada’s East Coast to allow direct shipments.

“We would like the Canadian LNG market to open to Europe. We would like to see the Canadian gas flowing to the East Coast of Canada and the Canadian gas flowing in European pipelines,” Dzielski said.

He noted that some LNG currently reaching Europe from the United States is originally Canadian but routed through American facilities, leading to higher prices. “It’s being sold for a much higher price … than when it would come from Canada,” he said.

The call comes as Carney visits Poland, Germany and Latvia in a European trip aimed at deepening economic and defence ties.

In Berlin on Tuesday, Carney stood alongside German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and pledged that Canada would “stockpile critical minerals and liquid natural gas for sale to Germany via new ports,” marking a departure from former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s assertion there was “no business case” for LNG exports to Europe.

“There’s a huge range of immediate opportunities with respect to critical metals and minerals, and there are medium-term opportunities with respect to all forms of energy, including LNG and hydrogen,” Carney said, citing new investments in East Coast port infrastructure.

The ambassador said while progress has been stronger in other areas of bilateral co-operation, advancing LNG exports would be a “benefit for Europe and a benefit for Canada.”