Does France want Canadian-made liquefied natural gas (LNG)? After President Emmanuel Macron hosted Prime Minister Mark Carney this September, the answer is a resounding “yes.”
The two leaders met in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, the French archipelago just off Newfoundland's southern coast, in the first official visit by a Canadian Prime Minister to the islands, according to the PMO [1].
“Canadian liquefied natural gas projects can help. They are important for Europe,” Macron said, via EnergyNow [2].
Speaking to reporters during the visit, the French President was more direct: “Canada is a country with significant resources of critical minerals and rare earths. It is also a major oil and natural gas producer,” Macron said, according to a translation by France 24 [3].
“What we want to do is conclude agreements to secure more liquefied natural gas that can be shipped to Europe’s Atlantic coast.”
Macron is the latest leader to say so. In August, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called Canada an important partner as Japan works to secure its energy supply. In 2024, then President Andrzej Duda said Poland would “of course” be interested in Canadian LNG. Go back further to 2022, when former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on multiple occasions that his country and Europe would buy Canadian LNG if it were made available. From Greece to Latvia to Ukraine to South Korea to South Africa to the Philippines, these countries, and others, have all said something similar.
France’s statements that both it and Europe want our LNG confirm, yet again, what Canadians have heard for years: the world wants more of our LNG.
France is Europe’s largest LNG importer, and its numbers show why Canada matters in this equation:
The EU says that those Russian volumes are on a countdown, banning imports from the country under long-term contracts from January 1, 2027 [6]. That leaves France and other European markets hunting for millions of tonnes of new supply.
President Macron also linked the talks to geopolitical crises, domestic fuel prices, and to tensions in the Middle East, according to the French Government’s Élysée’s transcript. The Strait of Hormuz crisis has shown how quickly global energy supply chains can be disrupted.
Europe does not want to swap one dependence for another. It needs a trusted ally with abundant natural gas, a supplier just like Canada.
Ottawa’s official readout [1] says the two leaders “agreed to strengthen cooperation on energy security, as Canada accelerates its efforts to unlock its full potential as a superpower in clean and conventional energy.”
The next day, at the United Nations, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said an energy partnership with a European country using LNG from Canada’s West Coast was “quite conceivable,” adding, “That goes for France,” Reuters reported [8].
“Every country I speak with asks about potential partnerships in energy,” she said.
Macron said talks on concrete projects have begun and will continue at an upcoming G7 meeting on energy, according to the Élysée.
French industry already has skin in the game. In May 2025, TotalEnergies signed a 20-year agreement to buy 2 million tonnes per year from Ksi Lisims LNG on B.C.’s north coast, subject to a final investment decision [8].
In September, the $30-billion project signed its third international supply deal of 2026, following agreements with German firms Uniper and SEFE, more proof of strong demand for Canadian energy and natural gas.
Wanting Canadian LNG and receiving it are two different things. As Macron himself noted, much of Canada’s LNG heads to the Pacific. Here is where things stand:
Canadian LNG could also potentially reach Europe from other parts of the country. Kino Aski LNG, a First Nations-led project, proposes shipping up to 15 mtpa to Europe from Baie-Comeau, Quebec. West Coast supply can help Europe too, through swap arrangements like the one Anand said Canada discussed with Germany this year.
The payoff would be enormous. New LNG deals could take Canada from less than 0.01% of its natural gas exports going to non-U.S. markets in 2024 to an estimated 55% by the early- to mid-2030s, according to Natural Resources Canada [9]. More customers mean better prices for Canada’s energy resources, more jobs for Canadian families, and more revenues for Canadian governments to spend on the healthcare and education we rely on.
Canada has made real progress on LNG approvals, but more can be done to ensure that projects get past the finish line.
France now joins Japan, Germany, Poland, Greece, South Korea, and several other nations that want Canadian LNG. When the leader of one of Europe’s largest economies calls our projects important for Europe, Ottawa should treat it as a business case, not a compliment – and, to our federal government’s credit, they are.
Europe is asking. Asia is asking. Even the Middle East is asking. Canada has the resources, the Indigenous partners, and our allies’ trust.
When the world asks for Canadian energy, we should be ready to deliver, making Canada stronger in the process. Let’s get to work!
SOURCES:
1 - https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/readouts/2026/09/20/prime-minister-carney-meets-president-france-emmanuel-macron
2 - https://energynow.ca/2026/09/frances-macron-hails-new-chapter-in-canada-ties-eyes-lng-deals/
3 - https://www.france24.com/en/france/20260920-macron-carney-hail-new-chapter-in-france-canada-ties-at-symbolic-archipelago-meeting
4 - https://giignl-documents.s3.fr-par.scw.cloud/public/ar-2026-annual-report.pdf
5 - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/w/ddn-20260325-3
6 - https://energy.ec.europa.eu/strategy/repowereu-phase-out-russian-energy-imports_en
7 - https://www-elysee-fr.translate.goog/emmanuel-macron/2026/09/21/deplacement-a-saint-pierre-et-miquelon?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
8 - https://boereport.com/2026/09/21/canada-sees-scope-for-france-lng-partnership-minister-says/
9 - https://www.canada.ca/en/natural-resources-canada/news/2026/09/canadian-lng-project-signs-third-international-offtake-deal.html