It was an important day for Canada today. I’m grateful to have been asked to be a panelist at today’s Indian Resource Council event in Calgary. Premier Daniel Smith came to visit following her meeting with Prime Minister Carney. Whether you agree or disagree with the MOU penned today, the important takeaway is we are finally seeing some cooperation and good sportsmanship between the feds and the provinces. That’s what Canada is about – a confederation. For a confederation to function there has to be some give and take. Onwards and forwards Canada!
Here are a few of the topics I covered while being a panelist at the IRC conference in Calgary last week. Our topic was focused on Alberta’s new proposed pipeline to Northwest BC. While existing export infrastructure is not operating at full tilt today, aggregate forecasts show that growing output from western Canadian oil sands will push export demand to levels that could exceed current pipeline capacity by 2027 or shortly thereafter. Modern pipelines can incorporate state‑of‑the‑art safety and environmental protections — such as advanced leak detection, automatic shut‑offs, and high-integrity containment — which significantly reduce the risks compared with older systems or alternative transport (e.g. rail or truck). Countries such as Norway maintain substantial oil export infrastructure — onshore terminals and pipelines linked to offshore fields — while upholding rigorous environmental oversight. Canada has the ability to follow suit. In Norway’s model, revenues from petroleum activities flow back into social‑welfare and public programs, demonstrating that exporting oil can be compatible with high environmental and social standards. A new coastal pipeline would open access to global markets (e.g. Asian refineries) beyond traditional North American routes. This means Canadian product would be sold at world market prices. That diversification could yield better prices and reduce reliance on constrained continental demand and the US market. The project would create economic opportunities — port operations, marine logistics, and service industries — that come into being only if private capital commits. This avoids the need for taxpayer-funded subsidies. The project would also be catalytic to the investment in carbon, capture and storage milestones and advancements. There is potential for meaningful equity participation and benefit-sharing with Indigenous communities — again, contingent on private investment under market terms. The Indigenous terminus community could potentially own 51% of the terminal and related infrastructure.
