Environment Archives - Page 3 of 6

30Jan

By Bob Ascah2 Comments

Bankruptcies, Banks, Employment, Energy, Environment, Politics, Uncategorized

Smith as CEO Alberta Enterprise Group to Savage: 29 July 2021- “RStar”

Below is the full text of the letter from then AEG President Danielle Smith to then Energy Minister Sonya Savage concerning a proposed royalty credit for legally required environmental remediation. Analysis of letter is below. ALBERTA ENTERPRISE GROUP 11626-119 Street Edmonton, AB T5G 2X7 July 29, 2021 Minister Sonya Savage Minister of Energy 394 Legislature Building 10800-97 Avenue Edmonton, AB T5K 2B6 Dear Minister Savage: It was a pleasure meeting with you to discuss a pilot project this fall, to test out the RStar program as a new approach to address the issue of decommissioning and closing inactive wells. I would like to summarize our conversation as you are working with your department officials to understand why this pilot project is so important to ou...

2Jan

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Environment, Politics

Issues to follow in 2023- Analysis and Opinion- Part 1

Report by Todd Hirsch for NDP on windfall. In October former ATB Financial Todd Hirsch was given a mandate by NDP leader Rachel Notley to study what to do with windfall revenues received by the province’s treasury. Hirsch was a consummate pick of Notley. (Full disclosure- I hired Todd as ATB's first economist through a lengthy process which I won't bore you with.) Hirsch was ATB’s chief economist for 15 years and knows the province’s economy inside and out. Hirsch’s persona, excellent speaking raves and travelling to ever part of the province speaking and learning about Alberta’s economy will build enormous economic credibility which the NDP hopes to “capitalize” on. There are only so many financial alternatives to parceling out a budget surplus: 1) pay down debt, 2) spend the money, ...

A Nod to Independence- Alberta Sovereignty (within a United Canada) Act

12Dec

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Investment, Opinion/Research, Politics

A Nod to Independence- Alberta Sovereignty (within a United Canada) Act

Much ink, digital and audio content has been accumulated in the nearly two weeks that has elapsed from the Throne Speech and introduction of Bill 1. the Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act (ASWUCA) became live. Pundits, learned professors, business people and the loyal opposition have weighed in. The reviews have been rather negative for the most part with much of the criticism aimed at the Henry VIII clauses embedded in the Bill. I walk through the main portions of Bill 1 offering comments and opinions. From what Premier Smith tells us she is open to changes. These changes came a week later after heavy criticism from many quarters including the Calgary Chamber of Commerce. At the end of the day, the Act may have all the huffing and puffing that went into the equalization ...

Despite soaring profits, oil companies are not paying enough for their environmental damage

4Dec

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Government Finances, Investment

Despite soaring profits, oil companies are not paying enough for their environmental damage

Published: December 1, 2022 1.55pm EST from the Conversation with permission. Re-published in newspaper edition of The Globe and Mail, Alberta section, on 17 December 2022 and online at Winnipeg Free Press on 2 December 2022. Re-published in The Tyee on 11 January 2023 At the end of the third quarter reporting season in October, the Big Four oilsands producers continued to report record profit levels. Collectively, Cenovus, CNRL, Imperial Oil and Suncor earned $5.8 billion in the third quarter and $23.1 billion in the first nine months of 2022. The average return on capital during the period was almost 25 per cent. The only minor hiccup was Suncor’s reported loss — primarily due to a non-cash impairment charge of $3.4 billion against its Fort Hills assets. Despite the write-down, Sunco...

Reflections on 2 political conventions – Alberta style

30Oct

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Opinion/Research, Politics

Reflections on 2 political conventions – Alberta style

Updated 2 November 2022 I spent October 21-23 at the NDP conventions at Calgary’s Hyatt Regency. The Hyatt is a tony place for a “labour-based” party and six years before it was the Hyatt too which welcomed DIPers. By my third convention I did finally find a hospitality suite, two to go to in fact, with rumours of a third. Most sophisticated parties, like Alberta's NDP, now operate with sponsoring organizations to create the single most spectacular annual gathering of the parties' core supporters. The usual organizations for both parties are also relying on business for support. I could see why some business groups and others are investing time of senior people at these conventions simply to ensure they have a voice “in” a prospective NDP government It was very strange that the UCP were ...

Federal guidance for best-in-class -Alberta’s carbon pipeline-Pathways “plan”

20Oct

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Health, Opinion/Research

Federal guidance for best-in-class -Alberta’s carbon pipeline-Pathways “plan”

Several announcements from Ottawa, Edmonton and Calgary took place last week. We unpack these announcements for their significance. Guilbeault takes centre stage On Wednesday 12 October 2022 Environment and Climate Change Canada released "draft guidance" on "best- in- class" GHG emissions for oil and gas projects. The National Observer regarded the guidance as a surrender to Big Oil, particularly the oilsands industry. I will examine some of the interesting aspects of draft guidance. Most important is the "draft" adjective used. Clearly Minister Guilbeault does not see the guidance as the final word. The question for industry and environmentalists will be where the red line will be drawn over future oilsands growth and the emissions cap. According to Cloe Logan of the National Observ...

5Oct

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Employment, Environment, Politics

Timber Management Agreements- politics and consultation rights

A recent rash of timber license agreements have been reached in the past week (29 September; 27 September). This is indicative of the influence of timber interests- labour and capital- whose support of the local UCP candidate will practically guarantee their election. These agreements purport to give long-term employment guarantees. These assurances however might not be entirely in accord with the actual tenure agreements. Grande Prairie The 29 September news release from Nate Horner, the Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Economic Development minister spoke to the future of the Grande Prairie region reads in part: Over their lifespans, the renewed Grande Prairie and Pembina FMAs are expected to maintain more than 1,250 full-time, contract and seasonal positions, and will potentially con...

7Sep

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Intergovernmental, Opinion/Research

Who owns the Big Four?

Profits earned by foreign direct investors on their assets in Canada were up $2.8 billion, led by the energy sector. Statistics Canada report on balance of payments. Statistics Canada Report on balance of international payments- 30 August 2022 In a column earlier this year, Gordon Laxer argued that Alberta’s inquiry into foreign influence should also have examined the foreign influence in the Canadian oilpatch. This post examines the ownership of the Big Four oilsands producers using current data from Thomson Reuters’ Refinitiv. In an earlier post first half financial results of these companies was compared against bank profits. As the tables indicate, the top investors are mostly North American with Canadian bank subsidiary iinvestment management firms holding a small portion of the sh...

6Jun

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, Energy, Environment, Politics

Balancing Pool Act- Public interest or political posturing

On 21 April, apparently in response to opposition demands that the UCP government stop withdrawals of utility services and get cheques or rebates into the hands of Albertans quickly, Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity Dale Nally issued a news release. During a 17-minute news conference Nally took the former NDP government to task when releasing a March 2021 report from Deloitte LLP on the financial position of Alberta's Balancing Pool (ABP). The report concluded that the cost of the policy changes totaled $1.34-billion. It is ironic that this is about the same number that the UCP government lost from its bet on TC Energy's Keystone XL pipeline. Dale Nally, Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity Nally was in true fighting form demonstrating lessons he...

Sequoia Resources- Abuse of Process brought to a halt in “common sense” Court of Appeal decision

31May

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Financial Institutions

Sequoia Resources- Abuse of Process brought to a halt in “common sense” Court of Appeal decision

Background The continuing saga of the bankruptcy of Sequoia Resources is finally back at the trial stage. On March the twenty-fifth the Alberta Court of Appeal (ACA) directed the Trustee in bankruptcy’s challenge of Perpetual Energy’s sale of its “Goodyear” assets must precede to trial. The unanimous decision by ACA justices Patricia Rowbotham, Ritu Khullar and Jolaine Antonio took particular exception to the manner in which Perpetual Energy Inc. and associated entities -Perpetual Operating Trust (POT), Perpetual Operating Corp.(PEOC), and Susan Riddell Rose had relitigated their defense with two applications to the Masters of Chamber judge opposing the claim by PricewaterhouseCoopers’ LIT (PWC) acting as the Trustee over the estate of bankrupt Sequoia Resources. The long saga commence...