British ColumbiaThe initial tranche of major projects the federal government will help get off the ground quickly include two B.C. projects: LNG Canada and the Red Chris copper and gold mine. Premier David Eby says that’s a good start.B.C. Premier David Eby is heading to Ottawa next week to push for more fast-tracked B.C. projectsKatie DeRosa · CBC News · Posted: Sep 11, 2025 9:04 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoPremier David Eby speaks from the Highland Valley copper mine near Logan Lake, B.C., on Thursday, Sept. 11. He was reacting to Ottawa’s list of “nation-building” projects, which include two resource projects in B.C. (CBC News )B.C. Premier David Eby says it’s a boon that two of the five so-called “nation-building” projects that will be prioritized by Ottawa are located in his province. However, Eby says he’s heading to Ottawa to meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney next week to push for more fast-tracked B.C. projects. The list includes two resource projects that have already cleared regulatory hurdles in B.C.: Phase two of LNG Canada in Kitimat, and the expansion of the Red Chris copper and gold mine in northwestern B.C. “I am proud that 40 per cent of the projects listed by the federal government on their priority projects list are British Columbia projects,” Eby said. “These are a small share of the over $40 billion of private-sector projects that we have that we’re advancing with the federal government.” Eby will be in Ottawa Wednesday and Thursday. As CBC News first revealed Wednesday evening, the prime minister unveiled a list of five nation-building projects. The list is being sent to the newly created Major Projects Office (MPO).”We used to build big things in this country, and we used to build them quickly. It’s time to get back at it, and get on with it,” Carney said at an event in Edmonton. “That starts with getting out of the way.”The prime minister said that major infrastructure projects in Canada have been stalled by a convoluted approval process rife with red tape — and the days of asking why a project should be built are gone.”Canada’s new government now starts by asking ourselves for major projects: How?” Carney said. “How can we build? How can we do it bigger? How can we do it faster?”WATCH | Carney unveils first tranche of projects: Carney announces 5 major projects he says will bring $60B to Canada’s economyPrime Minister Mark Carney unveiled a list of five ‘nation-building’ projects on Thursday, including increasing LNG processing capacity, updates to the Port of Montreal and investments in Ontario’s nuclear energyThe first five projects include: Phase two of LNG Canada in Kitimat, B.C., doubling its production of liquefied natural gas. The Darlington New Nuclear Project in Clarington, Ont., which will make small modular reactors. Contrecoeur Terminal Container Project to expand the Port of Montreal. The McIlvenna Bay Foran Copper Mine Project in Saskatchewan. The expansion of the Red Chris mine in northwestern B.C. “Combined, these five projects will generate more than $60 billion for the Canadian economy and create tens of thousands of high-paying careers for our workers,” Carney said. “These five projects are just the beginning.”Carney also unveiled a “critical minerals strategy” that he said will help projects “get to final investment decisions within a two-year window.” Eby praised Ottawa for recognizing the strategic importance of the Red Chris mine to Canada’s burgeoning mining sector. “Red Chris, it’s one project. It’s a multi-billion project. It’s the tip of the spear that reflects thousands of jobs and tens of billions of dollars in investments. That’s why I’m so glad to see it on the list.” The open-pit mine was opened in 2015, around 130 kilometres from the B.C.-Alaska border. In July, three contracted employees were trapped in the mine for days, following two “fall-of-ground incidents” in a tunnel leading to an underground work area.FRONT BURNERPolitics! Carney government ramps upNo oil pipeline on the list of projects of national interestThe province has approved a plan for the mine to implement a new method of “block-cave mining” to extend its lifespan, with the co-operation of the Tahltan Nation.Eby would also like to see the federal government prioritize the Roberts Bank Terminal 2 expansion at the Port of Vancouver, which he says is crucial to ensuring Canadian products can reach international markets. The second tranche of projects, the prime minister said, will be finalized by mid-November.Carbon-efficient projects Carney said the proponents behind this first tranche of projects have already done a lot of the hard work including consultation with Indigenous communities, provincial and territorial governments and local authorities. He said the first group of projects also already meet many of the required regulatory standards, but just need a little nudge to get them approved.”The government is referring them to the MPO to be shepherded across the finish line,” Carney said. “The office will help these proponents achieve any remaining regulatory and permitting approvals and secure the necessary financing.”Carney explained that these and future projects will receive some federal investment, but he would not say just how much that might be. Whatever federal dollars are invested, Carney said, will draw in much more from the private sector in most cases.WATCH | Carney says public funds would act as a multiplier: Carney says public dollars would ‘catalyze many multiples’ of private dollars in major projectsPrime Minister Mark Carney, speaking from Edmonton on Thursday, is asked who will pay for the first list of major projects that his government announced.Carney says many of the projects fit into his play for climate competitiveness. He highlighted the Pathways Plus project as an example, because it ties the potential construction of a new oil pipeline to the Pathways carbon capture and storage project.The prime minister said if built, the Pathways Plus project would reduce carbon emissions in Alberta equal to taking 90 per cent of the cars and trucks in that province off the road. He said other projects announced Thursday also promise an environmental dividend.”It is no accident that the projects for example in the mining sector, or the LNG projects that we’re referring directly to the MPO are lower carbon,” Carney said, adding that being low carbon while developing major projects will be necessary if Canada is going to trade with nations that are also trying to reduce their carbon footprint.Alberta premier working to get pipeline consideredAn oil pipeline is not in the first tranche of projects. But, before the list was unveiled, a Liberal source insisted that its absence would not mean that one will never happen. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Wednesday that she is hopeful the federal government will soon identify a pipeline project to approve. (Tiphanie Roquette/Radio-Canada)Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told reporters in Calgary ahead of the announcement that she wouldn’t be concerned if an oil pipeline wasn’t on the initial list.”It’s not, ‘Oh my gosh, this is it, nothing else can be added,'” Smith said. “So we’ve got a little bit of work to do to be able to get to an environment where oil companies want to expand their production.” Smith said she’s hopeful that “in short order, we’ll be able to get this to the finish line together.”Radio-Canada also reported that Carney told Smith earlier this summer the involvement of a private developer was essential for a pipeline project to move forward.So far, no company has expressed interest in financing or carrying out such a project.Avoiding ‘politically challenging’ projectsNathan Cullen, a former NDP MLA and MP, says it’s clear Carney is starting off with projects that are already close to the finish line and are less politically charged. “I was curious to see what was named today and what was not named. Particularly getting oil to the north coast was not on the list but was definitely hinted at,” Cullen said. “An oil pipeline would be a different thing, and I think would be a risk to everything in this project if they started to push those really contentious and politically challenging projects.”Some First Nations groups share those concerns, saying that while the current list of projects has First Nations approvals, the same can’t be said for a pipeline project. “The concern is future projects, including the push for a northern diluted-bitumen pipeline that is being pushed by Premier Danielle Smith,” said Terry Teegee, regional chief of the B.C. Assembly of First Nations.ABOUT THE AUTHORKatie DeRosa is the provincial affairs reporter for CBC British Columbia. She is based in Victoria. You can contact her at katie.derosa@cbc.ca. With files from Kate McKenna, Peter Zimonjic, Catharine Tunney and Darren Major
Eby praises B.C. representation on Ottawa’s list of ‘nation-building’ projects
