Here are the top news stories covering Canada’s energy landscape:

Québec Minister Praises LNG Project at Public Hearing

During one of the multiple-day hearings on the CAN $9 billion liquified natural gas (LNG) complex being proposed by GNL Québec, Quebec’s junior minister responsible for regional development Marie-Ève Proulx stated her fervent support for the project, calling it the future of the province.

Proulx also stated the project has support from many stakeholders, specifically social and economic ones.

The series of public hearings are a part of the ongoing environmental review process by Québec’s Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement, known as BAPE. The review committee is expected to submit its report to Québec’s environment minister in January 2021. Afterwards, the province can than either approve or reject the project, based off of BAPE’s recommendations.

Proulx’s comments were made on the third day of hearings during a question period when Liberal MNA Ruba Ghazal asked what alternatives the minister had to offer workers in Saguenay besides the proposed LNG project.

In her response Proulx stated she was highly confident the project would move forward:

“There is a very concrete will to move forward with this project.”

The LNG complex, officially deemed the Énergie Saguenay Project, was proposed in 2014 by GNL Québec. Once completed, the plant expects to export 11 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year—using resources from western Canada. GNL Québec anticipates the complex to become fully operational by 2026.

Report: The Clean Fuel Standard Will Stifle Canada’s Economic Recovery

A new report out of the Montreal Economic Institute reveals some of the unintended outcomes of the soon-to-be-introduced Clean Fuel Standard (CFS), which will be announced by the Canadian federal government within the coming weeks.

The Clean Fuel Standard (CFS), which aims to curb greenhouse gas emissions by leveraging low-carbon fuel sources and technologies, may create artificial price increases for heavily utilized energy sources in the manufacturing industry like natural gas. As a result, the increase in prices could put strains on all levels of the manufacturing supply chain, leading to layoffs.

Miguel Ouellette, an Economist at the MEI, says that these increased costs could be amplified, taking into consideration many other sectors besides manufacturing:

“The number of jobs potentially affected is even greater if we take into account all the other sectors of the Canadian economy that will also be subjected to the CFS like transport, forestry, oil and gas, mining, and many others.”

Including the negative economic impact from job losses, the MEI report points out that at-large, the CFS lacks any sort of proper approach to addressing climate change, stating the regulation omits the fact that climate change is global phenomenon, not a national one.

In their report, the MEI argues the CFS does little to ensure any sort of reduction in greenhouse gas emissions:

“Even if this is real and presents a problem to be addressed, energy policies must be judged according to their potential results, not according to the intentions behind them. A major aspect that the CFS seems to omit is the fact that climate change is a global phenomenon, not a national one.”

The MEI concludes, putting forth the notion that the federal government should recognize the progress Canadian business have made in emissions reductions, and to draft energy policies that make a clear, positive impact on emissions.

For more Canadian energy news and setting the record straight on the day’s top stories about the oil and natural gas industry, visit Canadian Energy Network.