AB Pol Econ

Supreme Court of Canada: AER 5, ATB 2 – Redwater Decision

3Feb

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Bankruptcies, Environment

Supreme Court of Canada: AER 5, ATB 2 – Redwater Decision

Originally posted 4 February 2019 On 31 January 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada handed down its decision in the Redwater Resources (Redwater Energy Corporation) case. SCC Decision The decision, by a 5-2 majority, was written by Chief Justice Richard Wagner (concurring Abella, Brown, Gascon, Karakatsanis). The 183 page judgment included a 70- page dissent by Madame Justice Suzanne Côté (concurred in by Justice Michael Moldaver). The majority opinion relied heavily upon the earlier dissent from former Alberta Court of Appeal Justice, Madame Sheilah Martin (who joined the High Court last year). ACA Decision Madame Justice Suzanne Côté The decision affirmed the right (and strategy) of the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) to deny a Receiver, acting for a creditor, the ability to "dis...

30Jan

By Bob AscahNo Comments

ATB, Bankruptcies

Redwater Supreme Court Hearing-Part 3

Practicalities The effect upon Alberta's energy industry will be profound whichever way the Supreme Court decides. As the following exchanges illustrate, the role of the Receiver or Trustee in Bankruptcy is crucial in enabling creditors to be paid back. Justice Côté: Mr. Lenz, you are describing to us the consequences of a judgment of our Court dismissing appeal you say. In their factums the respondents are making an argument about the practical consequences of a judgment allowing the appeal….. (more…)

30Jan

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Bankruptcies

Redwater Supreme Court Hearing Part 2

Principles of Interpretation Cooperative Federalism A key objective of counsel was persuading the Court how to interpret the relationship between federal and provincial law. How do jurists address laws that appear to contradict one another? Should judges take a "narrow," textual reading of the laws or a broader view about the intent of legislatures, or the spirit of the "fathers of Confederation"? Should the Court weigh the practical effects of their judgment on the industries as a deciding factor? The OWA and its fellow appellants urged the Court to interpret the federal and provincial laws in the context of "cooperative federalism." (more…)

Environmental Liabilities-Part 2 AER Bombshell

6Nov

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Opinion/Research

Environmental Liabilities-Part 2 AER Bombshell

Originally posted on 5 November 2018 On Thursday, 2 November 2018 a startling Power Point presentation made by the Vice-President, Liabilities of the Alberta Energy Regulator [Go to National Observer] was released under Alberta's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. The path-breaking investigation was undertaken by staff at the National Observer, Toronto Star, StarMetro Calgary, and Global News. Find the full Powerpoint presentation here. AER-FEB 28-wadsworth-liability-260 BILLION (1) Mr. Wadworth (pictured) worked at the Bruce Nuclear power plant in Ontario prior to his taking the VP's job at the AER. Mr. Wadsworth is a graduate of Royal Military College. In 2017, according to AER's disclosure under the Public Sector Compensation Transparency A...

6Nov

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment

Environmental Liabilities Part 1- Exxon-Mobil

Originally posted 5 November 2018 Two major stories hit the wire this past week spotlighting the emerging realization that financial markets do care about the scale of environmental liabilities of energy companies. In this post the lawsuit filed by New York State's Attorney General is examined. In Part 2, the story about estimated environmental liabilities reported by the Alberta Energy Regulator to industry in a private meeting in February 2018 is explored. On 24 October the Attorney General of the State of New York, Barbara Underwood, brought a lawsuit against Exxon-Mobil. The lawsuit alleges ExxonMobil "fraudulently, systematically and repeatedly has deceived investors about the impact that future climate change regulations could have on the company's assets and value."New York...

30Oct

By albertarecessionwatchNo Comments

Bankruptcies

Redwater Supreme Court Hearing- Part 1

Originally posted 1 November 2018 SUMMARY What were the justices asking? Stakes include who will pay for the vast environmental liabilities created by the extraction of oil and gas Outcome will determine the future structure of lending in the oil patch How is the AER's licensee liability rating system expected to work during a downturn? On Thursday 15 February 2018, I attended the hearing on the Redwater Resources case at the impressive Supreme Court Building along Wellington Street. I had hoped to produce a write-up on the questionning by the justices well before now... but life has its interruptions. (more…)

29Sep

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, ATB

ATB FINANCIAL (ALBERTA TREASURY BRANCHES) TURNS 80

Happy 80th Birthday Today ATB's Rocky Mountain House branch celebrates its 80th anniversary. ATB's history page contains a picture of the branch under the title of "providing hope." The branch was located inside the Forest Services office. According to Alf Hooke's memoire 30+5 I know, I was there (Edmonton, Institute of Applied Art, 1971): "When Mr Aberhart realized that his government would not be permitted to control the credit of the province in accordance with the legislation that had already been passed and later disallowed, other means of accomplishing, at least to some degree, a measure of control of the issuance of credit were sought. The first Treasury Branch opened on September 29th, 1938 in Rocky Mountain House and on September 30th branches were opened in Andrew, Edmonton,...

26Sep

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy

TRANS MOUNTAIN- THE FEDERAL COURT WEIGHS IN

Originally posted 25 September 2018 SUMMARY Options remain Implications Chart of parties to court action Excerpts from decision Links to previous posts While the majority decision of Federal Court of Appeal Justice Eleanor Dawson threw a curve into the plans of Justin Trudeau and Rachel Notley, recent commentary suggest there may be a way out. Federal Court of Appeal decision (more…)

25Sep

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Uncategorized

Welcome to AbPolEcon.ca

Dear Reader - welcome. AbPolEcon.ca is the successor website to Albertarecessionwatch.com. No more newspaper PDFs AbPolEcon.ca has carried forward most of the content from Albertarecessionwatch.com but does not contain scanned PDF documents from Globe and Mail and Edmonton Journal articles. For readers who would like to see news articles related to blog postings, there are over 1800 news articles that are indexed into the classification system of this website. Please contact us for assistance. Improved cross-referencing of posts The migration of Albertarecessionwatch.com to AbPolEcon.ca includes improved cross-referecning of related articles. What's Coming As Alberta moves closer to election day, posts will focus on the most pressing issues faced by the province. ...

Pressure reaching boiling point over Kinder Morgan project

10Apr

By albertarecessionwatchNo Comments

Energy

Pressure reaching boiling point over Kinder Morgan project

Originally posted 10 April 2018 Political agendas- staying in power and getting re-elected Are environmental groups under undue influence of foreign players? Possible Solution - feds exercising its jurisdiction over marine activities? Canada's oil and gas industry and financial community and their media allies have ramped up pressure on politicians in Victoria, Ottawa, and Edmonton to reach a deal. Capital hates regulatory uncertainty and Kinder Morgan's board has finally said "enough is enough." The parent company of Kinder Morgan Canada is based in Texas and its Texas roots have been used to bolster opposition to the pipeline. (more…)