The Canadian Press Oil and Gas News

OTTAWA - Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault isn't warming to the idea of combating climate change by imposing a windfall tax on the massive profits being posted by Canadian energy companies. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres this week said fossil fuel companies are making massive profits and should be taxed extra to pay for climate action and deliver help to people struggling with their energy and food bills. Guilbeault says Canada is already ensuring fossil fuel companies pay [Read more]

CALGARY - Two executives from Royal Bank of Canada say financial institutions will need to invest not just in green energy companies, but also in the fossil fuel industry, if Canada is to meet its climate change targets. RBC Capital Markets CEO Derek Neldner and RBC's head of ESG and Strategic Initiatives Lindsay Patrick were in Calgary Tuesday for an energy conference. Neldner said RBC believes it will cost Canada $2 trillion to achieve its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. He [Read more]

OTTAWA - Proponents of imposing a windfall tax on the Canadian oil and gas industry now have another global power setting precedent for the policy. On Wednesday, the European Commission proposed levying such a tax on the energy sector and redirecting funds to households and businesses struggling with high inflation. It estimates the policy would bring in 140 million euros (around $186 million) in revenue. The European Union is not the only jurisdiction to pursue an extra tax on the energy [Read more]

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday threatened to completely cut energy supplies to the West if it tries to cap prices of Russian exports. He also vowed to press on with Moscow's military action in Ukraine until it achieves its goals. Speaking at an annual economic forum in the far-eastern port city of Vladivostok, Putin scoffed at the EU plans for a cap on Russian oil and gas prices as a “stupid" idea that "will only lead to a hike in prices.” “An attempt to limit [Read more]

WASHINGTON - Michigan's chief law enforcement officer wants to appeal a judge's decision to keep the Line 5 pipeline dispute in federal court. In court documents, Attorney General Dana Nessel suggests District Court Judge Janet Neff made errors in her Aug. 18 ruling. That's when Neff rejected efforts to get the dispute moved back to state court, where Michigan may have a better chance of success. Nessel filed a motion last week indicating she plans to pursue an "interlocutory" appeal [Read more]

CALGARY - The final long weekend of summer will also be the cheapest for Canadian drivers, with gasoline prices heading into the Labour Day holiday the lowest they've been since late February. The national average retail price for regular gasoline on Thursday, according to Natural Resources Canada, was 161.1 cents per litre. The last time Canadians saw average gasoline prices in the $1.60 range was during the last week of February, just before the effects of Russia's Feb. 25 invasion of [Read more]

EDMONTON - Alberta’s finance minister says the government is going to use this year’s projected windfall budget surplus to pay down debt and put some cash in its piggy bank. Jason Nixon says the plan is to make a $13.4-billion repayment on the provincial debt and add almost $3 billion to the Heritage Savings Trust Fund. Nixon says that in the past Alberta governments often failed to sock money away in boom times and it now has to make decisions to benefit future generations. His [Read more]

EDMONTON - Alberta Premier Jason Kenney says based on first-quarter projections for the current fiscal year that the province is on track for a $13.2-billion budget surplus. He says in a video posted on Twitter that the surplus is due in large part to soaring commodity prices and royalty revenue. More to come. [Read more]