Canada

Canadian Energy Weekly Round-Up: February 3, 2020

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

Trans Mountain Gains B.C. Government Concession

British Colombia’s Premier John Horgan conceded that the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion will continue, noting that “the courts have determined that the project is legitimate and should proceed.” Horgan’s concession was tepid, but the project is estimated to bring billions of dollars in provincial and municipal taxes to British Colombia. Meanwhile, a majority of Canadians—55 percent according to a recent poll—still support the project.

Teck Resources Mine Project Presents Opportunities

Canada’s former minister of Natural Resources Amarjeet Sohi recently explained how the Teck Resources Frontier mine project presents the opportunity for Alberta to lead on emissions reductions. Among his suggestions, Sohi called for stringently-enforced regulations and further called for the project to support low-carbon solutions:

“The $70 billion of new tax revenue generated from the Frontier project can help us transition to a low-carbon economy. When the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project was approved, the federal government decided to allocate all federal revenues from the project to support clean technology innovation to reduce emissions. It should do the same with tax revenue from the Frontier project.”

Sohi’s advice came amid Premier Jason Kenney’s calls for the federal government to quickly approve the Teck Frontier oilsands mine, referencing the support the project has received from First Nations groups in the region.

Partnerships between First Nations groups and energy companies can have enormous benefits. For example, Cenovus recently pledged $50 million to build Indigenous housing, in addition to the company’s earlier pledge to spend $1.5 billion with Indigenous businesses over the next decade. Chief Vern Janvier from the Chipewyan Prairie Dene First Nation explained how important this partnership is:

“Our revenues in our nation have dropped to a third of what they were six years ago. For our communities, it’s huge for us to be able to access this much money to build housing for us with no strings attached and that’s a whole new concept for me.”

Anti-Scientific Activists Target Energy Industry

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment released a report on Wednesday which called for a ban on hydraulic fracturing. Multiple scientific studies have confirmed that fracking is safe, and director of public affairs for the Énergie Saguenay plant, Stéphanie Fortin, had to reiterate how Canada’s regulations go above and beyond those of other energy producers:

“Canada, Alberta and British Columbia set themselves apart from other natural gas producers in the world by environmental standards considered to be the strictest in the world.”

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.

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