07-05-03 Oil and gas reserves located near the Queen Charlotte Islands are ideally suited for the US market, a British Columbia cabinet minister said.

Rick Thorpe, the province's Minister of Competition, Science and Technology, said there are many obstacles to clear before any drilling project is approved on Canada's West Coast, but an offshore oil and gas industry is viable for British Columbia.
"Our strategic location is ideal for our good friends in the United States," he said after attending an energy conference in Houston.