Alberta
Multi-billion Dow Chemical investment pegs Alberta as a top spot for low carbon plastics production
The announcement Dow will construct the world’s first net-zero carbon emissions ethylene and derivatives complex, in Fort Saskatchewan, Wednesday November 29, 2023.
From the Canadian Energy Centre
By Will Gibson
Net zero petrochemical complex seen as a signpost for future investment in Alberta’s Industrial Heartland
Dow Chemical’s Nov. 28 announcement confirming it will invest $8.8 billion to build a net zero petrochemical complex near Edmonton was close to a decade in the making for Fort Saskatchewan Mayor Gale Katchur.
“Now that they’ve finally announced the project, I’m one of the happiest mayors around,” says Katchur, who was first elected in October 2010.
“What Dow is building will inspire other industries with innovation and technology like this. Dow has been a cornerstone for our community for the past 60 years. This investment ensures they are going to be around for a lot longer.”
The project, which has support from the municipal, provincial and federal governments, will increase Dow’s production of polyethylene, the most widely used plastic in the world.
Welcomed by the community
By capturing and storing carbon dioxide emissions and generating hydrogen on-site, the complex will be the world’s first ethylene cracker with net zero emissions from operations.
“I remember speaking to Dow executives during their regional visit some years back. They were curious about potential public concerns, given the visibility of their visit and the nature of their business,” Katchur says.
“My response was clear: the primary concern in our community is the pace of progress. People here recognize and appreciate the petrochemical industry. We understand the benefits that it brings.”
Competitive advantages
Katchur’s joy is shared by Mark Plamondon, executive director of Alberta’s Industrial Heartland Association, who sees the Michigan-based multinational’s decision as an endorsement of the region’s competitive advantages.
“Dow is a global company and could put their capital anywhere in the world,” says Plamondon, whose group attracts global investment in heavy industry to the 582-square-kilometre region northeast of Edmonton.
“What this demonstrates is Dow can meet both their economic and environmental goals by investing in this region. That sends a real message.”
Bob Masterson, CEO of the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada, sees Dow’s decision to build the facility as a signal of where the industry will make large investments in the future.
“In the short term, you are looking at the province’s largest construction project requiring more than 7,000 high-skill, high-paying jobs for the next seven to 10 years,” says Masterson, whose Ottawa-based group represents chemistry and plastics producers across Canada.
Alberta a top destination for low carbon chemical production
“What Dow’s decision really says is Alberta is a top destination for the chemistry industry to invest. One of the top chemical producers in the world is making this investment in Canada,” he says.
“When you look at the bigger picture, the only real rival for low-carbon investment of this kind is the U.S. Gulf Coast, where you have the same access to natural gas liquids as a feedstock and supportive public policy environment.”
The Industrial Heartland region is particularly attractive for companies looking to invest in low-carbon products, Masterson says.
“Alberta has an abundant low-carbon feedstock in natural gas liquids to produce hydrogen and the geological space to sequester carbon. These natural assets can encourage investment and support low-carbon chemistry industry,” he says.
“One of the largest petrochemical companies on the planet believes it can build a low-carbon chemistry plant based on these assets. Other companies will see they can generate and extract that value out of those resources in a very sustainable and responsible manner.”
Filling space on the Alberta Carbon Trunk Line
In addition to geological and natural resources, the region already possesses critical infrastructure to woo investment in low-carbon production, such as the Alberta Carbon Trunk Line (ACTL), the world’s largest CO2 pipeline.
Dow has signed an agreement with ACTL owner Wolf Midstream to utilize space on the system.
ACTL is the foundation of a hub that captures CO2 from an oil refinery and fertilizer plant and moves it for permanent storage in a nearby depleted oil field.
The pipeline currently transports 1.6 million tonnes of CO2 per year but is built to transport 14.6 million tonnes of CO2 per year.
“The infrastructure is in place already. The trunk line has plenty of surplus capacity to transport additional emissions,” Plamondon says.
“That just adds to the value proposition for potential facilities that are moving to low-carbon production.”
Alberta
Free Alberta Strategy petition demanding PM Trudeau fire Steven Guilbeault passes 13,000 signatures
News release from Free Alberta Strategy
Are you tired of watching elected officials flout the law and disregard public concerns with impunity?
Are you frustrated by a federal government that prioritizes arrogance over accountability?
If so, you’re not alone.
Over 13,000 people have signed our petition calling on Justin Trudeau to fire Steven Guilbeault.
Once one of Greenpeace’s most disruptive forces, Guilbeault has spent enough time in an orange jumpsuit to build up a reputation for deliberately ignoring both law enforcement and the courts.
Since then, his career has been marked by a troubling disregard for both legal boundaries and public sentiment.
In 2001, Guilbeault was found guilty of mischief for scaling the CN Tower in Toronto and displaying a banner.
He received a sentence of one year’s probation, was mandated to complete 100 hours of community service in Montreal, and was ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution.
The incident incurred approximately $50,000 in costs for the tower operators.
Shortly thereafter, Guilbeault orchestrated another audacious act, leading a Greenpeace team in a demonstration at the Calgary residence of then Alberta Premier Ralph Klein and his wife, Colleen.
They erected a banner, positioned ladders against the house, and ascended to the roof to install a solar panel.
The intrusion deeply unsettled Colleen Klein, who was alone at the time and feared a home invasion – she resorted to grabbing a broom for defense.
Despite his controversial background, Justin Trudeau’s decision to appoint Guilbeault as Minister of Environment and Climate Change raised eyebrows and elicited criticism.
Jason Kenney, then premier of Alberta, accurately predicted the consequences of Guilbeault assuming a significant role in Justin Trudeau’s cabinet.
“His own personal background and track record on these issues suggests someone who is more an absolutist than a pragmatist when it comes to finding solutions,” Kenney said.
It’s perhaps no surprise then that Guilbeault’s response to legal setbacks in his political career, such as the Supreme Court’s ruling on the unconstitutionality of his Impact Assessment Act, has been dismissive, indicating a stubborn adherence to his own agenda rather than a willingness to heed judicial guidance.
Instead of accepting that he was wrong and repealing the law, Guilbeault wants to pass minor amendments and pretend like the Supreme Court ruling never happened.
Worse, the amendments – buried 552 pages into a 686-page budget implementation bill – don’t fix the problem.
Guilbeault still has the power to control projects that fall under provincial jurisdiction.
Consequently, tensions between the federal and provincial governments have escalated, with Alberta poised to immediately challenge the amended legislation in court once again.
This charade is getting old.
This pattern of defiance and disregard for legal constraints has become wearisome, eroding public trust in the integrity of federal institutions.
The rotation of headlines proclaiming federal overreach and constitutional breaches underscores a troubling trend within the governing party, where arrogance appears to have supplanted prudent governance.
Guilbeault, with his checkered past and continued ignorance of the law since becoming Minister, are crippling public confidence.
A few months ago, we launched a petition calling on Justin Trudeau to see the light, and fire his most controversial Minister.
Since then, things have only gotten worse.
If you agree, and think Guilbeault should be fired, please sign our petition today:
Then, send this petition to your friends, family, and every Albertan so that they can sign too!
Regards,
The Free Alberta Strategy Team
Alberta
Fortis et Liber: Alberta’s Future in the Canadian Federation
From the C2C Journal
By Barry Cooper, professor of political science, University of Calgary
Canada’s western lands, wrote one prominent academic, became provinces “in the Roman sense” – acquired possessions that, once vanquished, were there to be exploited. Laurentian Canada regarded the hinterlands as existing primarily to serve the interests of the heartland. And the current holders of office in Ottawa often behave as if the Constitution’s federal-provincial distribution of powers is at best advisory, if it needs to be acknowledged at all. Reviewing this history, Barry Cooper places Alberta’s widely criticized Sovereignty Act in the context of the Prairie provinces’ long struggle for due constitutional recognition and the political equality of their citizens. Canada is a federation, notes Cooper. Provinces do have rights. Constitutions do mean something. And when they are no longer working, they can be changed.
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