BOE Report

Alberta should copy Alberta on oil royalties: former Norwegian finance minister

OTTAWA - A former Norwegian finance minister says Alberta's new government should take inspiration on handling resource revenues from the same place her country found it — Alberta."We were inspired by Alberta when we established our sovereign wealth fund," said Kristin Halvorsen, who was Norway's finance minister from 2005 to 2009 and led that country's Socialist Left party in a coalition government."But there have been many differences in how we established the fund."Alberta's new NDP [Read more]

Canada crude oil production estimated at lowest in almost two years: report

CALGARY - A report by Barclays says Canada's crude oil production last month is estimated to be the lowest it has been in almost two years.While companies have yet to release production numbers, the British bank says wildfires and upgrader maintenance in Alberta are expected to have cut average national production to 3.98 million barrels of oil a day in May after peaking at an average of 4.59 million barrels a day in January."We expect Canadian crude production in May to be the lowest in nearly [Read more]

Western premiers talking diversification in light of low oil prices

REGINA - Canada's western premiers discussed ways to diversify their economies in light of plunging oil prices during a teleconference call Monday.Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall was host on the call that was a substitute for the annual western premiers meeting to save time and money.Both he and British Columbia Premier Christy Clark noted that their provinces are heavily reliant on resource revenue, but have had to find other ways to bring in cash with the downturn in energy prices."We're [Read more]

TransCanada reaches deals with 3 more B.C. First Nations for pipeline project

PRINCE RUPERT, B.C. - TransCanada Corp. says it has reached project agreements with three more First Nations in northern British Columbia as part of efforts to build a pipeline across the province to a proposed liquefied natural gas terminal on the coast.Specifics of the agreements weren't announced but TransCanada said they provide for annual legacy payments over the commercial life of the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline plus benefits upon signing and at other milestones.The latest [Read more]

B.C. activists protest Shell oil drilling ship’s movement through Inside Passage

VANCOUVER - A group of environmentalists and B.C. First Nations opposed to Arctic oil exploration are protesting a multinational oil and gas company's movements through the West Coast's Inside Passage.International environmental organization Greenpeace says Royal Dutch Shell is transporting its oil-spill-containment vessel, the Arctic Challenger, up B.C.'s coastline to the Aleutian Peninsula in Alaska.Chief Calvin Craigan of the Sechelt First Nation says increased tanker traffic in the region [Read more]

New coating made in Edmonton for pipelines could cut down leaks, spills:official

EDMONTON - A nanotechnology advancement being developed at Edmonton's Northern Alberta Institute of Technology could hold the key to making pipelines safer.Reg Allen of Meso Coat Technology Canada says the spray coats the inside of the pipe and could double the life of the line, even with something as corrosive as oil or gas flowing through it.Western Diversification Minister Michelle Rempel was in Edmonton Friday to announce the government is giving the company $1.5 million to develop the [Read more]

US oil and natural gas rig count drops by 10 to 875; down 4 in Texas

HOUSTON - Oilfield services company Baker Hughes Inc. says the number of rigs exploring for oil and natural gas in the U.S. declined by 10 this week to 875.Houston-based Baker Hughes said Friday 646 rigs were seeking oil and 225 explored for natural gas. Four were listed as miscellaneous. A year ago, with oil prices nearly double the current levels, 1,866 rigs were active.Among major oil- and gas-producing states, Texas lost four rigs, California declined by three and Arkansas, Louisiana and [Read more]

Oil downturn drags down GDP numbers, but worst of slump likely over: expert

CALGARY - The ugliness isn't over for Alberta's oilpatch but the worst of it has likely passed, observers said Friday as Statistics Canada posted some gloomier-than-expected economic data."I think the mood and apprehension was far worse in January than it is now," said ATB Financial chief economist Todd Hirsch."That said, you wouldn't call the current environment bright."The Statistics Canada figures showed the Canadian economy contracted by 0.6 per cent during the first quarter on an annualized [Read more]

Alberta recession unavoidable: report

CALGARY - A recession is unavoidable in Alberta this year, according to a report by the Conference Board of Canada.The province's economy is expected to shrink by 0.7 per cent in 2015, even though oil prices seem to have stabilized at around US$60 a barrel, the Ottawa-based economic think tank said Thursday.Next year, it's calling for modest growth of 1.1 per cent."Alberta's economic performance will be underwhelming this year and next, especially compared with recent years," said [Read more]

Risk of Trans Mountain pipeline spill could hurt green brand: Vancouver mayor

VANCOUVER - New evidence proves the expansion of Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline presents a grave threat to the City of Vancouver's health, economy and environment, said Mayor Gregor Robertson.The city commissioned expert reports on the potential impacts of the $5.4 billion proposal and the findings were presented to council on Wednesday."Today we heard overwhelming evidence that the Kinder Morgan pipeline proposal and the oil tankers associated with it are incredibly disastrous for [Read more]