Latest news with #Pathways
Calgary Herald
2 days ago
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Alberta minister 'cautiously optimistic' about tanker ban reversal after northern B.C. visit
OTTAWA — Alberta's point man on a massive western corridor project says he's 'cautiously optimistic' about getting rid of a major roadblock to the construction of a new West Coast oil and gas pipeline after visiting British Columbia's northern coast. Article content Devin Dreeshen, the province's minister of transportation and economic corridors, told the National Post that he was struck by the level of opposition among locals to the federal moratorium on northern B.C. oil tanker traffic, with several pointing out that the ban does nothing to stop tankers coming and going from nearby Alaska. Article content Article content Article content 'When you go out there and you look at (the coastline), there's almost an oil tanker a day going down from Alaska,' said Dreeshen. Article content Article content 'So, when you look at American tankers going north and south along the coastline, but us not allowing our Canadian tankers to go straight west, away from the coastline… The hypocrisy (of the situation) was pointed out by a lot of folks,' he noted. Article content '(People are) saying that we should be able to compete the same way the U.S. and other countries do, by being able to ship our oil out to our tankers.' Article content Dreeshen was in the northern port city of Prince Rupert, B.C., last week to strengthen Alberta's ties to the critical Pacific trade outpost, joined by Alberta Indigenous Relations Minister Rajan Sawhney and members of Alberta's Industrial Heartland Association. Article content Alberta already moves nearly $4 billion of merchandise through the Port of Prince Rupert annually — including propane, agricultural products and wood pulp — but both Dreeshen and his boss, Premier Danielle Smith, think that this number could be much bigger. Article content Article content Smith said in a May letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney that Prince Rupert would make the ideal endpoint for a new pipeline carrying Alberta oil to non-U.S. markets. Article content 'As (one of) North America's closest ports to Asia… the Port of Prince Rupert offer(s) year-round deep-water ports and existing terminal infrastructure,' wrote Smith. Article content The letter called for Carney to repeal the tanker ban to enable oil exports from the Port of Prince Rupert. Article content Smith called for a 'grand bargain' at this month's first ministers' meeting in Saskatoon where some of the revenue from a new northwest coast pipeline would be used to finance the multibillion-dollar Pathways oilsands decarbonization project.
Vancouver Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- Vancouver Sun
Alberta minister 'cautiously optimistic' about tanker ban reversal after northern B.C. visit
OTTAWA — Alberta's point man on a massive western corridor project says he's 'cautiously optimistic' about getting rid of a major roadblock to the construction of a new West Coast oil and gas pipeline after visiting British Columbia's northern coast. Devin Dreeshen, the province's minister of transportation and economic corridors, told the National Post that he was stuck by the level of opposition among locals to the federal moratorium on northern B.C. oil tanker traffic , with several pointing out that the ban does nothing to stop tankers coming and going from nearby Alaska. 'When you go out there and you look at (the coastline), there's almost an oil tanker a day going down from Alaska,' said Dreeshen. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'So, when you look at American tankers going north and south along the coastline, but us not allowing our Canadian tankers to go straight west, away from the coastline… The hypocrisy (of the situation) was pointed out by a lot of folks,' he noted. '(People are) saying that we should be able to compete the same way the U.S. and other counties do, by being able to ship our oil out to our tankers.' Dreeshen was in the northern port city of Prince Rupert, B.C., last week to strengthen Alberta's ties to the critical Pacific trade outpost, joined by Alberta Indigenous Relations Minister Rajan Sawhney and members of Alberta's Industrial Heartland Association. Alberta already moves nearly $4 billion of merchandise through the Port of Prince Rupert annually — including propane, agricultural products and wood pulp — but both Dreeshen and his boss, Premier Danielle Smith, think that this number could be much bigger. Smith said in a May letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney that Prince Rupert would make the ideal endpoint for a new pipeline carrying Alberta oil to non-U.S. markets. 'As (one of) North America's closest ports to Asia… the Port of Prince Rupert offer(s) year-round deep-water ports and existing terminal infrastructure,' wrote Smith. The letter called for Carney to repeal the tanker ban to enable oil exports from the Port of Prince Rupert. Smith called for a 'grand bargain' at this month's first ministers' meeting in Saskatoon where some of the revenue from a new northwest coast pipeline would be used to finance the multibillion-dollar Pathways oilsands decarbonization project. Dreeshen said that his work in building out a rail and transit network from central Alberta's industrial heartland to northern B.C. and the premier's pipeline advocacy are 'two sides of the same coin.' Both B.C. Premier David Eby and Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond say they support the North Coast tanker ban. The moratorium was first called by Justin Trudeau shortly after he became prime minister in late 2015, effectively killing the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline to Kitimat, B.C. It was signed into law in 2019 . Chris Sankey, a member of the local Tsimshian community of Lax Kw'Alaams, says the tanker ban was rushed, and put into place without the adequate consultation of those affected. 'It didn't give a platform for the Indigenous communities to get in the room and have a discussion, leadership to leadership … It was a decision that's now come back to hurt Indigenous people's ability to have an open and honest discussion about energy, infrastructure, and port development,' said Sankey. 'This is an opportunity to amend the ban (in a way) that aligns with Indigenous communities' interests and concerns that we protect what we have and grow the economy.' Sankey, now an investment advisor, ran unsuccessfully for the B.C. Conservatives in last year's provincial election. The office of federal Transport Minister Chrystia Freeland didn't immediately respond to an inquiry from the National Post about the possibility of reversing the tanker ban. National Post rmohamed@ Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
Calgary Herald
3 days ago
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Opinion: New day for Canada demands bold moves on low-carbon growth from industry and governments
Article content The first ministers' conference in Saskatoon earlier this month might be remembered as the moment Canadian politicians finally got on the same page about decarbonizing the energy sector. Article content To realize the vision of turning Canada into a low-carbon energy superpower, we now need the energy sector to step up. And we need provincial and federal governments to put more skin in the game to convince industry that big investments in decarbonization will be economical in the long term. Article content Article content Article content First, we need the oilsands majors to commit to building the proposed Pathways Alliance carbon capture project without further delay. Article content Article content The federal and Alberta governments have already offered to cover almost two-thirds of Pathways' capital costs, as well as setting up additional carrots and sticks to help get the project over the goal-line. They've also agreed on the need for new pipelines to tidewater that can substantially increase revenues. Article content A new climate of federal-provincial collaboration creates an opportunity for policy changes the companies want, such as cancelling the oil and gas emissions cap. Article content What are the Pathways companies waiting for? The time is now to strike a deal with governments and build the infrastructure that Canada's oil sector needs to remain competitive in a rapidly decarbonizing world. Article content Getting Pathways built quickly is critical to this goal and to Canada's larger low-carbon growth ambitions. The project would reduce emissions by 22 million tonnes per year, almost a third of the oilsands' total. It would set Canada's oil and gas sector on a virtually unstoppable trajectory to decarbonization. Article content Article content For years, trying to decarbonize the energy sector has been like pushing a boulder up a hill. Pathways could heave us over the top. Article content For their parts, the provincial and federal governments should build on their new-found spirit of co-operation to strengthen the country's industrial carbon pricing system. That will unleash not just Pathways but also a wave of other low-carbon projects. Article content Strong industrial carbon pricing eliminates the need for duplicate policies such as the oil and gas emissions cap, which has created friction between Alberta and the federal government. If Alberta is willing to get on board with carbon market reforms, then the federal government would be wise to cancel the cap.
Vancouver Sun
4 days ago
- Business
- Vancouver Sun
Saskatchewan premier pitches 'port-to-port corridor' to connect northern Pacific and Arctic coasts
CALGARY — Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe is pitching the idea of a 'port-to-port corridor' that would connect energy and other goods to Canada's northern Pacific and Arctic coasts. Moe made his remarks Monday alongside Alberta Premier Danielle Smith at an event focused on both provinces' ambitions to double oil and gas production. 'I know we are not going to be entirely reliant on the U.S for that marketplace,' Moe said. 'We are going to have access to the world.' Moe, who leads the right-of-centre Saskatchewan Party government, said he likes what he's been hearing out of the Liberal federal government about making Canada an 'energy superpower' and the strongest economy in the G7. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. He admits that means going against his political stripe to some degree. 'Far be it for me to be accused of being chair of the Liberal booster club the last decade or so, but there are some comments from this Prime Minister that I think we can truly get behind,' Moe told the event hosted by energy services industry advocacy group Enserva. Prime Minister Mark Carney's government has introduced legislation that would fast track certain infrastructure projects deemed in the 'national interest' as U.S. President Donald Trump upends what until recently has been a reliable cross-border trading relationship. Carney has heard pitches from the premiers about what projects they think should be chosen, but has not said which have made the cut. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith wants a bitumen pipeline to be the 'anchor tenant' of a corridor to the Port of Prince Rupert, B.C., enabling exports to Asia above and beyond what the operating Trans Mountain pipeline can ship from the Vancouver area. She has said that project should be built in tandem with another one she'd like to see considered in the national interest: the Pathways proposal to capture and sequester carbon emissions from Alberta's biggest oilsands producers. Smith and Moe also voiced support for a pipeline to the Port of Churchill, Man., which would enable exports to Europe via Hudson Bay. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has been keen on the idea, too. 'One thing the prime minister seems to want is a project and a proponent,' Smith said. 'So we are working to get a proponent or a consortium to put a project on the table, and then we're going to test out this two year timeline that he has.' Smith said Carney has asked conservative premiers to reach out to people they know in the federal Conservatives to help the Liberals' project approval bill pass in the minority Parliament. Despite being encouraged by the new tone in Ottawa, Smith and Moe said they both want the repeal of numerous federal environmental policies that they say have stymied resource investment. 'Policies do matter and we need a significant policy shift and we need it very quickly,' Moe said. The event coincided with the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alta., where leaders from the United States, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and Italy, as well as the European Union, are meeting. The confab of world leaders puts Alberta on the map at a time when the approach to energy security is being 'recalibrated,' Smith said. 'I know that, especially with the world turmoil, the energy security needs of our international partners has never been more important. And I think this really does drive a focus about how Alberta can be the solution.' Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
Hamilton Spectator
4 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Saskatchewan premier pitches ‘port-to-port corridor' for energy and other exports
CALGARY - Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe is pitching the idea of a 'port-to-port corridor' that would connect energy and other goods to Canada's northern Pacific and Arctic coasts. Moe made his remarks Monday alongside Alberta Premier Danielle Smith at an event focused on both provinces' ambitions to double oil and gas production. 'I know we are not going to be entirely reliant on the U.S for that marketplace,' Moe said. 'We are going to have access to the world.' Moe, who leads the right-of-centre Saskatchewan Party government, said he likes what he's been hearing out of the Liberal federal government about making Canada an 'energy superpower' and the strongest economy in the G7. He admits that means going against his political stripe to some degree. 'Far be it for me to be accused of being chair of the Liberal booster club the last decade or so, but there are some comments from this Prime Minister that I think we can truly get behind,' Moe told the event hosted by energy services industry advocacy group Enserva. Prime Minister Mark Carney's government has introduced legislation that would fast track certain infrastructure projects deemed in the 'national interest' as U.S. President Donald Trump upends what until recently has been a reliable cross-border trading relationship. Carney has heard pitches from the premiers about what projects they think should be chosen, but has not said which have made the cut. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith wants a bitumen pipeline to be the 'anchor tenant' of a corridor to the Port of Prince Rupert, B.C., enabling exports to Asia above and beyond what the operating Trans Mountain pipeline can ship from the Vancouver area. She has said that project should be built in tandem with another one she'd like to see considered in the national interest: the Pathways proposal to capture and sequester carbon emissions from Alberta's biggest oilsands producers. Smith and Moe also voiced support for a pipeline to the Port of Churchill, Man., which would enable exports to Europe via Hudson Bay. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has been keen on the idea, too. 'One thing the prime minister seems to want is a project and a proponent,' Smith said. 'So we are working to get a proponent or a consortium to put a project on the table, and then we're going to test out this two year timeline that he has.' Smith said Carney has asked conservative premiers to reach out to people they know in the federal Conservatives to help the Liberals' project approval bill pass in the minority Parliament. Despite being encouraged by the new tone in Ottawa, Smith and Moe said they both want the repeal of numerous federal environmental policies that they say have stymied resource investment. 'Policies do matter and we need a significant policy shift and we need it very quickly,' Moe said. The event coincided with the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alta., where leaders from the United States, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and Italy, as well as the European Union, are meeting. The confab of world leaders puts Alberta on the map at a time when the approach to energy security is being 'recalibrated,' Smith said. 'I know that, especially with the world turmoil, the energy security needs of our international partners has never been more important. And I think this really does drive a focus about how Alberta can be the solution.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 16, 2025.
