Alberta
It’s Red Deer University!
From Red Deer College and Todayville
One year after learning that it would become a university, Red Deer College reached another major milestone today, when the Government of Alberta came to RDC to announce the institution’s new name of Red Deer University.
“A university’s name is not only about higher education and programs it offers, but it serves as a beacon of pride for the community it serves. I look forward to officially celebrating this new name following Red Deer College’s successful transition to become Alberta’s newest university,” says Marlin Schmidt, Minister of Advanced Education.
The historic naming announcement was the culmination of months of community consultations, research and visioning undertaken by RDC and external consultants, Will Creative and Stormy Lake Consulting. The extensive consultation process involved nearly 400 people from Red Deer, Ponoka, Stettler and Rocky Mountain House, and it was designed to help RDC learn exactly what the College means to those it serves.
“We heard from a wide range of people, and their feedback reinforced the intense pride people have both in Red Deer College and the community in which we live,” says Morris Flewwelling, Board of Governors Chair. “People have a strong emotional connection with this institution, and that was a factor we considered when reviewing name options. We need to be grounded in our significant history as we look ahead to all that Red Deer University will become.”
As part of the naming process, RDC staff and consultants looked at best practices for post-secondary naming from across three continents and reviewed nearly 100 workable options that could capture the future brand. Coupled with the community feedback, Red Deer University emerged as the outstanding option to capture the legacy of RDC and its future as a comprehensive regional teaching university.
“The name, Red Deer University, is a good starting point for us as we continue to develop our institutional identity. I appreciate that the name acknowledges the grassroots of what the university will stand on, which is the legacy built by Red Deer College, while also reflecting our expansion and commitment to post-secondary education,” says Esther Schilling, Vice President Academic with the Students’ Association of Red Deer College.
Red Deer University will continue to build on the 55-year history of the College, offering students a breadth of programming and credentials across Trades, certificates, diplomas and degrees. By offering innovative, practical and sought-after programs, the University will continue to provide the programs that students, businesses and industry partners identify as vital to the region, and this mirrors feedback from the recent community consultations.
“When community members told us what they wanted our University to become, they used words such as transformative, recognized and innovative. With the ongoing support from our community members and partners, we will forge a new path for our University that represents all of these elements,” says Joel Ward, President & CEO. “Looking ahead, we are Red Deer College, and we are Red Deer University. We’re committed to keeping what makes us great, as a College, as we become the University of our future.”
Alberta
Pierre Poilievre will run to represent Camrose, Stettler, Hanna, and Drumheller in Central Alberta by-election
From LifeSiteNews
Conservative MP-elect Damien Kurek announced Friday he would be willing to give up his seat as an MP so Pierre Poilievre, who lost his seat Monday, could attempt to re-join Parliament.
Conservative MP-elect Damien Kurek announced Friday he would be willing to give up his seat in a riding that saw the Conservatives easily defeat the Liberals by 46,020 votes in this past Monday’s election. Poilievre had lost his seat to his Liberal rival, a seat which he held for decades, which many saw as putting his role as leader of the party in jeopardy.
Kurek has represented the riding since 2019 and said about his decision, “It has been a tremendous honor to serve the good people of Battle River—Crowfoot.”
“After much discussion with my wife Danielle, I have decided to step aside for this Parliamentary session to allow our Conservative Party Leader to run here in a by-election,” he added.
Newly elected Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney used his first post-election press conference to say his government will unleash a “new economy” that will further “deepen” the nation’s ties to the world.
He also promised that he would “trigger” a by-election at once, saying there would be “no games” trying to prohibit Poilievre to run and win a seat in a safe Conservative riding.
Poilievre, in a statement posted to X Friday, said that it was with “humility and appreciation that I have accepted Damien Kurek’s offer to resign his seat in Battle River-Crowfoot so that I can work to earn the support of citizens there to serve them in Parliament.”
“Damien’s selfless act to step aside temporarily as a Member of Parliament shows his commitment to change and restoring Canada’s promise,” he noted.
“I will work to earn the trust of the good people of Battle River-Crowfoot and I will continue to hold the Liberal minority government to account until the next federal election, when we will bring real change to all Canadians.”
Carney said a new cabinet will be sworn in on May 12.
From the Canadian Energy Centre
By Will Gibson
Alberta oil sands projects poised to grow on lower costs, strong reserves
As geopolitical uncertainty ripples through global energy markets, a new report says Alberta’s oil sands sector is positioned to grow thanks to its lower costs.
Enverus Intelligence Research’s annual Oil Sands Play Fundamentals forecasts producers will boost output by 400,000 barrels per day (bbls/d) by the end of this decade through expansions of current operations.
“Existing oil sands projects deliver some of the lowest-breakeven oil in North America at WTI prices lower than $50 U.S. dollars,” said Trevor Rix, a director with the Calgary-based research firm, a subsidiary of Enverus which is headquartered in Texas with operations in Europe and Asia.
Alberta’s oil sands currently produce about 3.4 million bbls/d. Individual companies have disclosed combined proven reserves of about 30 billion barrels, or more than 20 years of current production.
A recent sector-wide reserves analysis by McDaniel & Associates found the oil sands holds about 167 billion barrels of reserves, compared to about 20 billion barrels in Texas.
While trade tensions and sustained oil price declines may marginally slow oil sands growth in the short term, most projects have already had significant capital invested and can withstand some volatility.
Cenovus Energy’s Christina Lake oil sands project. Photo courtesy Cenovus Energy
“While it takes a large amount of out-of-pocket capital to start an oil sands operation, they are very cost effective after that initial investment,” said veteran S&P Global analyst Kevin Birn.
“Optimization,” where companies tweak existing operations for more efficient output, has dominated oil sands growth for the past eight years, he said. These efforts have also resulted in lower cost structures.
“That’s largely shielded the oil sands from some of the inflationary costs we’ve seen in other upstream production,” Birn said.
Added pipeline capacity through expansion of the Trans Mountain system and Enbridge’s Mainline have added an incentive to expand production, Rix said.
The increased production will also spur growth in regions of western Canada, including the Montney and Duvernay, which Enverus analysts previously highlighted as increasingly crucial to meet rising worldwide energy demand.
“Increased oil sands production will see demand increase for condensate, which is used as diluent to ship bitumen by pipeline, which has positive implications for growth in drilling in liquids-rich regions such as the Montney and Duvernay,” Rix said.
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