| Sourced From Calgaryherald.com |
E nergy industry executives awaiting details of the federal government’s greenhouse gas emissions policies before making decisions on billions of dollars worth of oilsands investments will have to wait a little longer.
That’s the message from Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt, who flew to Calgary on Friday to meet the Canadian Energy Research Institute and host an afternoon roundtable with industry representatives, the fourth in a series that started two weeks ago.
In an interview with the Herald, she defended the government’s role so far.
“I don’t think we’ve been ambiguous on this issue. We’ve set out very clearly what our goals are: 20 per cent reductions from 2006 levels by 2020.We need to see that,” Raitt said.
“What we’re doing in natural resources and the energy ministry is we’re helping the science side, we’re helping to provide the tools, the research for people to be able to achieve those tools to reduce their emissions.”
She pointed out that the federal government has allocated $1 billion to research clean energy and another $650 million to investigate carbon capture and storage.
But Bob Dunbar, president of oilsands consulting firm Strategy West Inc., said worries about the specific unknown costs of emission compliance are blunting the encouragement provided to the industry by stronger crude oil prices and tighter heavy oil differentials.
“I think there is certainly hope in the industry that they can see some clarity in the near future,” Dunbar said.
“They don’t want to see this situation with all this uncertainty drag on for years. I think the sooner they can have clarity, the better off they are and the easier it will be for people to make decisions.”
He said there are many points of view on the subject –some players wouldn’t even mind a carbon tax, for instance –but most agree they want a fair regime that applies equally to all emitters, without picking winners and losers.
Some $100 billion worth of oilsands projects for northern Alberta were deferred or cancelled last year as credit markets froze and commodity prices tanked.
The series of roundtables — concerning integrated community energy systems, renewable energy, non-fossil clean energy, fossil energy and possibly one concerning large consumers of energy–will result in a report which will be used to develop “a second suite of eco-projects” in Canada, said Raitt.
“It’s going to help us set up our R&D plan because we do have significant investments in clean energy, in green transmission, R&D in general, in science and tech with respect to clean energy,” she said.
Raitt said renewable energy is more expensive than conventional sources so the government has to be careful about how it proceeds.
Dunbar said the industry is particularly worried about the American Clean Energy and Security Act being considered by the Senate and the White House. It would establish limits on greenhouse gas emissions from industrial facilities and launch the United States into a continental and possibly international carbon trading market.
When asked about whether she favours a hard cap on emissions by industry players, she said Environment Minister Jim Prentice is consulting on that, but that whatever is decided it will have to take into account what the United States is doing.
By Dan Healing, Calgary Herald
DHEALING@THEHERALD. CANWEST.COM
