Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kept the backers of Cedar LNG guessing about the project’s fate when Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida came calling for supply last week.

Canada LNG

As the leaders met in Ottawa, Haisla Nation and Pembina Pipeline Corp. awaited provincial and federal rulings on the C$3 billion (US$2.3 billion) plan for a liquefied natural gas terminal in Kitimat 840 miles north of Vancouver.

“We didn’t get any concrete commitment,” said Kishida after his Canadian stop on a five-country tour aimed partly at seeking replacements for Russian LNG. “The major countries are trying to have a stable supply of energy and also to decarbonize.”

Trudeau gave Cedar LNG no hints. He only said, “We know that being a reliable supplier of energy is important. But...