The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that B.C. billionaire Jim Pattison, the largest shareholder in Westshore Terminals, has a message for Victoria: Keep your hands off thermal coal. The Globe's Brent Jang writes that the BC Liberal government, which wants to impose a hefty carbon levy on thermal coal exports from B.C. ports, might be toppled as early as Thursday by an alliance of the BC NDP and Greens. The Greens support such a carbon tax, although BC NDP Leader John Horgan has not made it a priority. Mr. Horgan, should he become B.C. premier, is unlikely to act as swiftly on thermal coal as Premier Christy Clark pledged to do during the recent election campaign. However, Westshore still faces the political threat of a clampdown on thermal coal. Mr. Pattison said that with the weak long-term outlook for consumption of thermal coal in North America, Westshore should be allowed to continue exporting to electricity producers in Asia. "Over time, thermal coal, in my opinion, will be replaced either by natural gas or renewable energy. But there's lots of thermal coal in the world and it is certainly legal to export. If we don't ship it, somebody else will ship it," he told The Globe.