By Christoph Steitz

FRANKFURT, June 8 (Reuters) – German energy firm Uniper has signed a preliminary agreement ‌to secure liquefied natural gas from a key ‌project in Canada, a joint statement said on Monday, the latest ​sign of an intensifying energy partnership between the two countries.

The deal to procure LNG from Canada’s Ksi Lisims, a proposed export facility to be located on ‌British Columbia’s Pacific ⁠coast, comes hot on the heels of a similar deal by Uniper’s German peer ⁠SEFE last month.

• Uniper and Ksi Lisims LNG have signed a letter of interest for a possible offtake ​agreement of ​2 million tonnes of ​LNG per year

• Construction ‌of Ksi Lisims, which has a planned total capacity of 12 million tonnes per year, could begin by 2027

• Uniper could get LNG volumes from the project from 2032

• Uniper said the deal would ‌further diversify its procurement and add ​to the security of supply

• ​The agreement reflects ​Canadian efforts to expand exports and ‌European ambitions to bolster alternative ​gas routes after ​former main supplier Gazprom stopped delivering in 2022

• Reuters previously reported that Uniper was in talks ​to buy ‌LNG from Canada and that it was interested ​in volumes from Ksi Lisims

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz; ​editing by Matthias Williams)