Alberta Premier Danielle Smith speaks at the Alberta Municipalities Convention in Calgary on Thursday.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on Thursday said an agreement with Ottawa is expected to be signed in the coming days that would address federal regulations she has repeatedly said hamper private-sector investment in the energy industry.
The Premier said she is also encouraged by the latest batch of projects announced by Prime Minister Mark Carney this week that will be fast-tracked through his government’s newly created Major Projects Office, headed by former Trans Mountain Corp. chief executive Dawn Farrell in Calgary.
Ms. Smith has sought a “grand bargain” with the federal government that would scrap or adjust laws, including the ban on oil tankers off B.C.’s north coast. B.C. Premier David Eby and leaders of coastal First Nations have asked Ottawa to retain the ban.
Ms. Smith would like to see a pipeline to B.C.’s north coast eventually.
“I’m really encouraged to see that so many of the other provinces are proposing resource projects that are revenue-generating,” Ms. Smith told reporters in Calgary.
“We’re encouraged by where we find ourselves. We’re hopeful. Whether or not that hope is well-founded, our hope is to get to an agreement.”
Ms. Smith said her government is close to signing a memorandum of understanding with Ottawa that would address these issues. She did not provide a timeline or details around the agreement, but said an announcement would likely happen after Sunday’s Grey Cup – the deadline she had set for Mr. Carney to scrap or adjust the regulations she’s called the “nine bad laws.”
“Are we going to get to the finish line on an MOU? I think we’ll know in a few more days. I’m very hopeful,” Ms. Smith she told a crowd at an unrelated event earlier in the day.
Mr. Carney on Thursday acknowledged the negotiations with Alberta, describing them as “productive.”
“This is a very important process for the province, for the country,” Mr. Carney said in Terrace, B.C.
Mr. Carney and Ms. Smith have said reducing emissions through the Pathways Alliance carbon-capture project – a 400-kilometre-lone pipeline that would transport carbon trapped at oil sands facilities – would be a necessary condition to unlocking new pipelines. Mr. Carney added that initiative is “very much part of these discussions.”
Opinion: Canada needs to act like a fox on pipelines and oil
An agreement between Alberta and Ottawa is required, Ms. Smith said, because the commitments between the governments are complex. Among the issues being discussed are jurisdictional questions about the construction of pipelines crossing provincial boundaries. The intent is to also address federal rules governing resource development and a requirement that future projects partner with the Pathways Alliance.
“All of those had to come together with a memorandum of understanding so that we each put on the table what our commitments are to achieving it,” Ms. Smith said.
Ms. Smith added that she suspects private companies will be more interested in coming forward with a pipeline proposal after the agreement is signed.
Alberta is taking the lead on an application for a new oil pipeline to the B.C. coast, but the province has insisted it does not want to be the financial backer.