BOE Report

Oil-dependent Newfoundland and Labrador lacks competitive edge, study says

ST. JOHN'S, N.L. - It has come a long way economically in the last 15 years but oil-dependent Newfoundland and Labrador needs innovation and a workforce influx to compete in future, says a new report.The Conference Board of Canada released Thursday a study comparing the province to nine of its main competitors, selected for similar exports among other factors. They include Norway, the United Kingdom, Texas, North Dakota, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.It ranks the [Read more]

BoC keeps 0.75% interest rate, even though economy likely stalled in early 2015

OTTAWA - The Bank of Canada stuck with its trendsetting interest rate Wednesday even though it believes the oil-price shock stalled the economy to the point it had zero growth over the first three months of 2015.The central bank's justification for keeping its key rate at 0.75 per cent hinged, in large part, on its positive outlook for the non-energy sector, which it expects to materialize as the economic pain from the oil slump fades. The bank predicted those improvements would show up in the [Read more]

U.S. approaching historic switch to being a net exporter of energy: report

WASHINGTON - The United States is approaching a historic economic tipping point: in about a decade, the country will cease to be a net importer of energy, a government forecaster predicted Tuesday.Sometime around 2028, the U.S. will become a net energy exporter for the first time since the late 1950s, according to the annual long-term forecast released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.It said lower consumption, more efficient vehicles, increased domestic production of oil and [Read more]

Oil spill 90 per cent cleared but slick reaches beaches north of city: officials

VANCOUVER - Depending on who you were listening to on Tuesday, the response to Vancouver's toxic fuel spill was either a fine example of speed and co-ordination or a chaotic event filled with miscommunication.Coast guard commissioner Jody Thomas called the agency's handling of the spill "excellent" while city manager Penny Ballem stopped short of outright criticizing its response in a report to council.The spill dumped at least 2,700 litres of bunker fuel into English Bay last week.Ballem [Read more]

Ontario and Quebec will sign cap-and-trade deal Monday to curb climate change

TORONTO - Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne will sign an agreement Monday with Quebec on a cap-and-trade system to put a price on carbon in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.Ontario government sources told The Canadian Press Wynne will announce the deal at a news conference in Toronto Monday, before flying to Quebec City to make it official with Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard.The agreement between Ontario and Quebec will be signed one day before the other provincial and territorial [Read more]

NDP’s Notley promises royalty changes

EDMONTON - NDP Leader Rachel Notley says her party would encourage more oil refining in the province if it wins power in the Alberta election.Notley says the NDP would establish a commission to recommend a royalty structure to reward companies that add value to the oil rather than shipping it out raw to be refined somewhere else.The commission would report within six months.Notley says government studies have shown upgrading oil in Alberta could create 16,000 direct and spin-off jobs and [Read more]

Tough times in oilpatch mean busier civil enforcement agencies, auction houses

CALGARY - As Alberta's oilpatch slows down, John Shortridge is bracing for an onslaught of work.He runs Allied Shortridge Civil Enforcement, one of eight agencies in Alberta that work with bailiffs to carry out court orders and seize property, among other things.Shortridge has been in the business for more than three decades — first with the Alberta Sheriff's Office and then on his own after those functions were privatized in 1996. So, he's seen enough booms and busts to know what's coming."What [Read more]

Scotiabank CEO calls for end to bickering, indecision over energy infrastructure

Scotiabank's chief executive is calling on Canadian leaders to end the "inter-provincial bickering" and "political indecision" that is delaying several energy infrastructure projects.Brian Porter told shareholders at Scotiabank's (TSX:BNS) annual meeting that it should be a national priority to improve Canadian access to global energy markets."It is clear our inability to deliver energy to the world is detrimental to Canada's economy," Porter said in a speech in Ottawa on Thursday."It's also [Read more]

Apache agrees to sell Australian operations to private equity funds for $2.1 billion in cash

HOUSTON - Apache Corp. says it is selling its Australian oil exploration and production subsidiary for $2.1 billion in cash.The Houston-based company said Wednesday that a consortium of private equity funds managed by Macquarie Capital Group Ltd. and Brookfield Asset Management Inc. agreed to buy Apache Energy Ltd.The assets of Apache Energy Ltd. and its subsidiaries averaged production of roughly 49,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in March.The transaction is expected to close by [Read more]

Shell to buy BG Group in $69.7B takeover as low oil prices force industry consolidation

THE HAGUE, Netherlands - Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to buy British gas producer BG Group for 47 billion pounds ($69.7 billion) in cash and stock, the companies announced Wednesday. The move gives oil giant Shell a greater stake in natural gas markets in the wake of tumbling oil prices.Consolidations through takeovers and mergers are among the ways energy companies are seeking to reduce costs and become more efficient as oil prices have slumped.A joint statement said the boards of both [Read more]