Rob Morgan, CEO of the Alberta Energy Regulator. Photo courtesy AER

From the Canadian Energy Centre

By Will Gibson

Restructured AER aims a return to its technical roots

Rob Morgan’s introduction to the energy business was a summer job in the Lloydminster region in 1985, when the University of Saskatchewan chemical engineering student got up close and messy with heavy oil production at the wellhead.

“My work boots got very dirty very quickly. That’s the joke about working in heavy oil around Lloydminster. Once it’s on your boots, it never comes off,” says Morgan, a Saskatoon native.

“Working in the field was great because you were hands on with absolutely everything. It was just a fabulous experience.”

Oil stains on his steel-toed boots were not the only thing that stuck with Morgan, who spent the next four decades working in industry before being named CEO of the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) in February 2025.

Morgan wants to apply some of his hard-earned industry wisdom at the regulator following a 2024 review of the organization by a panel appointed by Premier Danielle Smith.

The panel found a need to return the regulator to its original purpose: resource conservation; orderly but continued economic growth; protection of people, communities, assets and the environment; and regulatory independence.

Returning the regulator to a form closer to its legacy roots will improve Alberta’s reputation as a stable, predictable, internationally competitive and rewarding destination for investment capital, the panel said in its final report.

Photo courtesy AER

“The whole world has changed since 2020,” says David Yager, an industry veteran and special advisor to the Premier who chaired the review panel.

New areas of focus including carbon capture and storage (CCS), emerging resources like lithium, and new opportunities like data centres require a modernized approach, Yager says.

“The question was whether or not the regulator was well suited for where the current government wants to take Alberta, and the answer is no, it wasn’t. But that’s changed,” he says.

“The conclusion everybody involved in the review came to is the AER is an independent regulator that needed more direct industry participation, so here we are.”

Prior to taking on the top job at the AER, Morgan retired as CEO of Strathcona Resources, a growing oil and gas producer in Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Along with hiring Morgan, the AER has brought on a reconstituted board of directors as part of implementing the panel’s recommendations.

Chairing the revamped board is Duncan Au, former CEO of CWC Energy Services, a contract drilling and well servicing company operating in Canada and the U.S. that was acquired by Precision Drilling in November 2023.

Just months into their new jobs, Au and Morgan wrote in the AER’s annual report about their new appreciation for the complexity of weighing the various elements of the regulator’s mandate.

“The narrative around energy development has taken on a new sense of urgency not only with a discussion of finding new markets and customers, but also how to grow and diversify Alberta’s role in those markets,” they wrote.

“From oil and gas to emerging opportunities in critical minerals, hydrogen, geothermal, and helium, the AER will be tasked to find the appropriate path among many competing priorities and perspectives.”

Through technological innovation, industry has already reduced environmental impacts, improved worker safety, and boosted economic returns, they wrote.

“It is clear we can continue to modernize our regulations and practices to keep pace with the next wave of technological development and carry out our core regulatory role: translating government legislation into practical regulation that safeguards the environment while ensuring Albertans continue to benefit from the wealth of resources in our province.”

From the Fraser Institute

By Tegan Hill and Austin Thompson

In Alberta, municipal government spending is on the rise—and not just because of higher prices or a growing population. Indeed, most of Alberta’s largest municipal governments have increased spending in recent years (even after adjusting for inflation and population growth). That means higher taxes for many Albertans. But depending on where you live, you might be paying much more than your neighbours.

From 2009 to 2023 (the latest year of available data), per-person spending across Alberta’s largest municipalities increased by 12.9 per cent (on average), climbing from $3,001 to $3,389 (inflation-adjusted).

Some governments have increased spending more sharply than others. For example, during that same 15-year period, local governments in Canmore, Grande Prairie County and Strathcona County all increased their per-person spending by more than 20 per cent to reach more than $4,000 per person. And Lethbridge, the province’s fourth-most populous city, increased per-person spending by 18.6 per cent to reach $4,423. (Again, all numbers adjusted for inflation.)

But not all municipalities share this approach to spending. Alberta’s two largest cities, Calgary (2.1 per cent) and Edmonton (4.8 per cent) saw relatively modest spending increases from 2009 to 2023. As a result, their 2023 per-person spending levels ($3,144 and $3,241, respectively) were around the middle of the pack.

Airdrie, Chestermere and Cochrane—all fast-growing communities near Calgary—each spent under $2,200 per person in 2023. And all three reduced their per-person spending. (after adjusting for inflation).

Of course, no two municipalities are exactly alike. They all make different policy choices about which services to fund and how to fund them. But the sheer size of these differences across Alberta—and the overall upward trend in spending—should grab the attention of Albertans.

Local governments have an enormous impact on the day-to-day lives of Albertans. They build local water infrastructure, maintain local roads, manage local parks and set municipal property tax rates. And yet, their budgets often receive far less public scrutiny than their provincial or federal counterparts.

Moreover, when municipal spending grows faster than population and inflation, year after year, it raises important questions about value, sustainability, and accountability. Albertans in high-spending municipalities are right to ask: has additional spending translated into better services? Or are costs rising without clear public benefit?

Municipalities need resources to function well—but they also should use those resources wisely. Albertans should pay attention to what their local government representatives spend—and how spending levels compare across the province—to help assess whether they’re getting good value for their tax dollars.

Tegan Hill

Director, Alberta Policy, Fraser Institute

Austin Thompson

Senior Policy Analyst, Fraser Institute