Much is at stake for the oil industry related to the outcome of the United States presidential election on Tuesday. What happens if President Donald Trump wins a second term? What happens if Joe Biden assumes the presidency? In his first term, Trump loosened methane rules and opened new offshore and Arctic areas to drilling.…
Less supportive policies and regulatory constraints has led to natural gas stagnation in Canada
By Mark Milke and Lennie Kaplan Canadian Energy Centre The United States has undergone an energy renaissance of sorts in recent years. After decades of importing significant volumes of natural gas, there has been a transformation in both the economy and policy on that source of energy in particular. Americans began to produce and export…
There is no carbon-free energy Valhalla. The environmental impacts of going ‘clean and green’ could be worse than using fossil fuels
By Jock Finlayson and Denise Mullen Business Council of B.C. We all go to the store to purchase things – groceries, clothing, tools or the latest electronic gadget. During the global pandemic, an increasing share of shopping has shifted online. A few clicks and an item soon arrives at our doorstep. We also often demand…
Oil-dependent economies are in a real quandary. Sliding markets, lowering demand and strong output capacities are set to hit the single-product, oil-rich economies of the Middle East, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a recent report. These oil-rich Persian Gulf states are now expected to see a six per cent real gross domestic product…
U of A computing scientist Omid Ardakanian is working on software to make buildings more comfortable while cutting emissions, lowering costs
For most of us, office cooling and heating systems are like wallpaper: you only really notice them if they catch fire. For Omid Ardakanian, office buildings offer potential energy savings on a skyscraper scale. “My obsession, if you want to call it that, comes from the sensors in these buildings,” said Ardakanian, a computing science professor…
Alberta’s consumers, businesses and governments were responsible for $31.4 billion of Ontario’s total interprovincial trade in 2016 alone
By Mark Milke and Ven Venkatachalam Canadian Energy Centre “All politics is local,” as 1980s-era U.S. House of Representatives leader Tip O’Neill put it. O’Neill’s point was straightforward: Voters care about what affects them. That, naturally, is where politicians then aim their promises and rhetoric. What’s true in politics is also true of the economy:…
Global energy players and major stakeholders are out with their keenly-awaited and immensely researched outlooks
Energy outlook season is here. And it’s not rosy. Global energy players and major stakeholders are out with their keenly-awaited and immensely researched outlooks. COVID-19 has turned 2020 into an unusual year, carrying long-term ramifications for the energy world. The Paris-based International Energy Agency has termed the pandemic a disruption not seen since the “world…
This is not business as usual. With the second pandemic wave around the corner and a significant drop in global capital spending, big oil is on a job-cutting spree. Job losses in the Canadian natural resources sector hit an all-time high in the second quarter of 2020. Currently, it stands at 43,000. Pipeline giant TC…
Plan requiring projects to describe how they will achieve net-zero emissions may not even be feasible
By Alex Whalen and Elmira Aliakbari The Fraser Institute Newfoundland and Labrador’s energy sector, already struggling from the downturn in world oil markets and the COVID-19 recession, has taken another blow – this time directly from the federal government. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently imposed new rules – known as the…
The importance of oil and gas extraction to Canada’s GDP, jobs, incomes or tax revenues can’t be understated
By Mark Milke and Lennie Kaplan Canadian Energy Centre No matter how you slice it, Canada’s oil and natural gas sector has been one of the nation’s most significant contributors to jobs, gross domestic product (GDP) and tax revenues over the decades. Even in down years, such as 2016, the oil and gas extraction sector…