Alberta Faces ‘Significant Disadvantage’ by Ignoring Energy Transition, Pembina Warns
Alberta’s ability to thrive and attract investment in a world shifting to low-carbon energy will depend on the climate and energy policy choices it makes in the weeks leading into this spring’s provincial election and beyond, the Calgary-based Pembina Institute warns in a 23-page policy roadmap released last week.
The global outlook for fossil fuels “has fundamentally shifted in the last 12 months,” with even fossil companies https://www.theenergymix.com/2023/01/31/bp-predicts-faster-oil-and-gas-decline-as-clean-energy-spending-hits-1-1t-in-2022/ projecting “a sustained decline in global demand for oil, beginning this decade,” Pembina writes https://www.pembina.org/reports/alberta-roadmap-to-the-new-energy-economy.pdf [pdf]. “If the world successfully achieves its goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 and avoiding the worst effects of climate change, that demand decline will begin sooner and be steeper—and will have a significant impact on Alberta’s industry.”
The provincial government led by Premier Danielle Smith has most recently been seen building a political brand https://energymixweekender.substack.com/p/heres-how-alberta-wins-in-the-shift based on its opposition to Ottawa, while advancing a C$100-million fossil tax break https://www.theenergymix.com/2023/03/01/fossil-donations-balloon-as-albertas-smith-touts-100m-tax-break/ that Smith originally supported as an industry lobbyist. But Pembina warns against a strategy that sidesteps the immediacy of the climate emergency and a decisive shift toward climate investment and action.
“Now more than ever before, companies are looking for opportunities to invest in climate solutions, and for jurisdictions where they can operate while meeting their own climate goals,” the roadmap says. “Choosing instead to remain out of step with the global trend towards low-emission economies would leave Alberta at a significant disadvantage in the years ahead.” |Read more https://www.theenergymix.com/2023/03/01/alberta-faces-significant-disadvantage-by-ignoring-energy-transition-pembina-warns/|
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