Prime Minister Trudeau said there was no business case for LNG terminals on the East Coast of Canada. He noted with the German Chancellor looking on this might have changed.
For many CEO’s in the Canadian oil and gas industry, this was a gut punch. We have collectively worked millions of hours individually to keep our companies in line with often radical changes in policy, we have adopted practices that only a few years ago seemed impossible, and we have survived incredible financial impacts to our industry from international crises.
All while providing the greatest reduction in carbon intensity globally. I want you to join other energy leaders and tell our European allies and Canadian Government that our industry is ready and able to help.
The International Energy Agency has said that for world energy market stability, the European Union should replace Russian gas with alternative supply sources, like Canada. We saw the recent visit from German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to discuss energy supply and the country facing a coming winter under Putin’s energy constraints. It’s clear he didn’t come here to Canada only to discuss windmills or hydrogen. Germany wants our natural gas.
So when Prime Minister Trudeau implies business was not ready and willing to supply Canadian LNG, it’s insulting.
Plus Trudeau was silent about the 12 year effort to produce natural gas in Quebec to not offend Premier Legault banned oil and gas, cancelled LNG projects, and blocked our pipelines.
If there is any reason for no LNG terminal on the East Coast, it’s governments creating a bad business environment. Under this Federal Government we saw bill C-69, the “no more pipelines” law and a myriad of anti oil and gas legislation. And it’s under the Legault Government that European and Canadian investors are being given no compensation for the gas discoveries they made in Quebec.
We in the Canadian oil and gas industry have survived the most impossible business climate and have come out strong. In the last decade the investment community has forced us to start telling our story differently. The largest carbon reduction plan in the world is being proposed by our oil sands companies.
Personally, my ambition is for Canada to become a senior partner to the world’s largest economies. I have been working on this through my not-for-profit life of over 25 years with Canadian Taxpayers Federation, The Manning Foundation, Canada Strong and Free Network, and Modern Miracle Network.
In my for-profit life, I have led Questerre Energy into Alberta, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Quebec. We have looked at projects in New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Ontario but found success in Quebec with the most giant Utica shale discovery. In Quebec we even developed a plan for a zero-emission energy hub outside Montreal that would supply industry, re-use the CO2 to make cement additives and other industrial products, and capture and sequester the remaining emissions. These are technologies available today that can make oil and gas extremely low emissions.
Many oil and gas industry executives, including myself, can envision Canada stepping up to its role as a senior partner in the world. We can truly be world leaders.
But we can’t do that if we can’t even support our global partners … let alone the rest of the planet.
If you believe in Canadian energy and Canada is ready and able to be world leaders – Sign our open letter to Tell Trudeau the business case is there, he just has to act on it. – email us at info@modernmiraclenetwork.org