Carney, Smith are about to sign an ‘energy collaboration’ deal in Alberta

Prime Minister Mark Carney will be in Calgary on Friday where he will meet with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, setting the stage for an announcement from the two on an energy deal.

Carney and Smith will participate in a signing ceremony on Friday morning “for an implementation agreement to strengthen energy collaboration and build a stronger, more competitive, and more sustainable economy,” following which Carney will meet with unionized skilled trade workers, his office said.

A source with direct knowledge of the negotiations told Global News this week that the federal and provincial governments are expected to increase Alberta’s effective industrial carbon pricing from $95 this year to $100 per tonne in 2027, rising to $130 per tonne by 2040. Global News is not identifying the source as they were not authorized to speak publicly.

Later in the afternoon Carney and Smith will host a joint press conference which will be streamed live in this article.

In November, Carney and Smith signed a memorandum of understanding that aims to lay the groundwork for a new pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast.

The flagship proposal in the memorandum is a bitumen pipeline from Alberta to Canada’s West Coast that would carry an additional 300,000 to 400,000 barrels per day destined for Asian markets.

The memorandum doesn’t say what route the pipeline will take but says Alberta is expected to submit a proposal for the pipeline to the federal government on or before July 1, 2026.

In addition to the pipeline, Alberta will also be exempt from Canada’s Clean Electricity Regulations under the memorandum terms. The suspension of the regulations in the province is not contingent on the pipeline being approved.

The regulations, which are to come into effect in 2035, would set limits on emissions from power generation using fossil fuels. Alberta has long criticized the regulations, as its grid is predominantly powered by natural gas.

The memorandum says Alberta will aim to “achieve net-zero emissions by 2050,” which the province said it will do by working on a new industrial carbon pricing agreement with the federal government.

Also in the memorandum are “multiple ambitious clean energy projects,” Carney’s office said, adding that Alberta’s industrial carbon pricing strategy will be aimed at reducing methane emissions by 75 per cent over the next decade.

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