B.C. government confirms gas revenue forecast errors worth $1.46B

Errors including botched currency conversions led the British Columbia government to overstate its forecasted natural gas revenues by about $1.46 billion over five fiscal years, officials confirmed on Tuesday. Energy Minister Adrian Dix said the most significant error, a 44-cent overstatement in the forecasted per-gigajoule price of natural gas this fiscal year, was a “serious mistake.” But he said the errors affect the province’s forecasting, not its actual revenues, which can vary in a given year. Price fluctuations, including the spike and subsequent decline linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have led the province to both underestimate and overestimate its revenues over the years, Dix said. “That part is a normal part. What isn’t a part of it is human error that we’re acknowledging today and correcting in the budget,” he told reporters in Vancouver. Senior staff with the ministries of energy and finance told a technical briefing earlier Tuesday that the errors had been independently verified and corrections would be included in the province’s quarterly fiscal report expected later this month. Story continues below advertisement The briefing heard the impact on B.C.’s deficit — last pegged at $7.7 billion for fiscal year 2025-2026 — would be made clear with the release of that report. The most substantial of the errors made by Energy Ministry staff related to U.S.-Canadian dollar conversions, when a formula was incorrectly applied across a spreadsheet. The province’s forecasting is based on private-sector estimates of natural gas prices, which are provided in Canadian or U.S. dollars. Dix said the error involved an incorrect assumption that figures were shown in U.S. dollars, when in fact they were Canadian dollars. The numbers were “again translated into Canadian dollars, leading to an overstatement of revenue,” he said. 2:14 Will budget error cost BC billions in natural gas revenue? Stick to the Facts Add Global News as a Preferred Source on Google to see more of our stories in your search results. The briefing heard correcting that error resulted in a price decrease of 44 cents per gigajoule of natural gas in B.C.’s forecasting for 2026-2027. Story continues below advertisement Budget 2026 shows incorrect forecasted prices per gigajoule ranging from $2.34 to $4.83 at plant inlet, referring to gas that hasn’t yet been processed. Get breaking Ottawa news Get breaking Ottawa news delivered to your inbox as it happens so you won't…