KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 1): Petroliam Nasional Bhd's (Petronas) 25%-owned C$40 billion (about RM124.63 billion) LNG Canada project has publicly committed to using a "hire local first" policy when awarding contracts, as its guarantee of jobs for Canadians was one of the conditions for its approval, The Star Vancouver reported today, quoting LNG Canada's statement.

The Star Vancouver reported that four months after construction on Canada's largest-ever private project in Kitimat, British Columbia began, LNG Canada has no public details of what it will entail. What is known, however, is that it does not include specific targets or quotas to hire Canadian workers, according to the report.

It was reported that since construction began last October, the company — a joint venture of Shell, Petronas, PetroChina, Mitsubishi and Kogas — has indirectly employed 505 people, including 270 from the local area.

LNG Canada was quoted as saying it will employ 10,000 Canadians over the project's lifetime, a number greater than the 4,500 to 7,500 jobs it initially said would be needed in proposals to the government.

"We are not envisioning the need to employ workers from outside Canada. This commitment is shared by our engineering, procurement and construction contractor and subcontractors, who are required to report on a monthly basis their progress toward achieving local hiring," LNG Canada said.