Brian Livingston – Contracting Enbridge Mainline Could Reshape Alberta’s Oil Production
To: Louise George, Secretary to the Canada Energy Regulator cc: Sonya Savage, Alberta Minister of Energy From: Brian Livingston Date: September 24, 2019 Re: Contracting Enbridge Mainline could reshape Alberta’s oil production The issues of curtailment, pipeline proposals and pipeline apportionment are related flashpoints in the oil patch. Curtailment has resulted in higher prices for heavy oil, but […] Governments and the energy industry should prepare for oil demand to plateau – Globe and Mail Op-Ed
Remember when some concerned energy analysts predicted there was an imminent limit to global oil supply? It’s now obvious there was no “peak oil” on the supply side; the world has hundreds of years of available oil supply. However, a peak in global oil demand is within sight and could be reached by the mid-2030s, if not sooner.
The supply-side analysis of peak oil was wrong-headed for two key reasons. First, it did not reflect the massive stocks of non-conventional oil, such as that embedded in porous rock and in Canada’s oil sands. Second, and more importantly, supply-side analysis severely underestimated the capacity of the oil industry to innovate and find ways to access these non-conventional sources of oil by developing new…
Grant Bishop – Alberta’s New Big-emitter Plan Tilts Towards Higher Intensity
To: Jason Nixon, Minister of Alberta Environment and Parks From: Grant Bishop Date: August 9, 2019 Re: Alberta’s New Big-Emitter Plan Tilts Towards Higher Intensity Last month, Alberta’s government released its proposal for a new framework for output-based pricing of greenhouse gas emissions from large industrial emitters. The Technology Innovation and Emission Reduction (TIER) would replace the current […] Opinion: Alberta’s Carbon Pricing Redesign Risks Diminishing Comparative Advantage For Lower Emission Facilities – Calgary Herald Op-ed
Earlier in July, Alberta’s government released its proposal for a new framework for output-based pricing of greenhouse gas emissions from large industrial emitters. The Technology Innovation and Emission Reduction (TIER) would replace the current Carbon Competitiveness Incentive Regulation (CCIR), introduced by the previous government in 2018.
The central difference is a move from a “one product, one benchmark” approach under CCIR for setting the thresholds above which facilities would face a carbon price and below which facilities would earn credits. In contrast with CCIR, for all sectors outside power generation, the TIER will move to a facility-specific benchmark equal to 90 per cent of a facility’s average emission intensity…
Glen Hodgson – Climate Change Demands Better Risk Management
From: Glen Hodgson To: Canada’s risk managers Date: August 2, 2019 Re: Climate Change Demands Better Risk Management A few weeks ago, the Bank of Canada added climate change to the list of risks it intends to analyze as part of its oversight responsibilities for the stability of the Canadian financial system and the overall performance of […] Too TIER-ed? Alberta’s Proposed Re-design of Carbon Pricing for Large Emitters
Alberta’s government proposes to replace the current Carbon Competitiveness Incentive Regulation for output-based carbon pricing of large emitters with the Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) system. A submission on behalf of the C.D. Howe Institute to Alberta’s government (published as a C.D. Howe Institute Verbatim here) details concerns with TIER – specifically that imposing a facility-specific benchmark on all facilities […] Grant Bishop – Political risks still loom for major projects after Bill C-69 becomes law
To: Canada’s natural resource sector From: Grant Bishop Date: June 26, 2019 Re: Political risks still loom for major projects after Bill C-69 becomes law Bill C-69, the federal government’s legislation to revamp the assessments for major projects as well as overhaul the National Energy Board, received royal assent last Friday. This followed the Senate’s 57 – 37 […] S1 E7 – Bill C-69 with Grant Bishop
After significant amendments from the Senate, Bill C-69 is coming back to the House for third reading. The original bill would have created significant uncertainties for the energy sector by allowing Cabinet to intervene in the independent review process of any future resource project. The Institute’s Associate Director of Research, Grant Bishop and host Michael […] Eric Miller – Branching out in Forestry
To: Canadians concerned about innovation From: Eric Miller Date: May 27, 2019 Re: Branching out in Forestry Canada’s forest products industry is facing barriers to growth that require innovation, new trade markets and supportive government policies to overcome. In my new C.D. Howe Institute Commentary, I examine how the sector is responding to its challenges and recommend policies that […] Kristen van de Biezenbos – Courtrooms still loom for Keystone XL
From: Kristen van de Biezenbos To: Canadians concerned about pipelines Date: May 22, 2019 Re: Courtrooms still loom for Keystone XL Late last month, President Donald Trump issued a new permit via executive order to approve the Keystone XL pipeline, side-stepping a federal court ruling that his first approval was flawed. To briefly recap, Keystone XL has […] Grant Bishop – Senate must overhaul or reject Bill C-69
To: Senator Rosa Galvez, Chair of Senate Standing Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources From: Grant Bishop Date: May 16, 2019 Re: Senate must overhaul or reject Bill C-69 In its session today, the Senate Standing Committee on Energy, Environment and Resources must decide on amendments to Bill C-69, the legislation revamping federal assessment of major projects. […] Branching Out: How Canada’s Forestry Products Sector is Reshaping its Future
May 14, 2019 – Canada’s forest products industry is facing barriers to growth that require innovation, new trade markets and supportive government policies to overcome, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In Branching Out: How Canada’s Forestry Products Sector is Reshaping its Future, author Eric Miller examines how the sector is […]