Energy
Pipeline builder fined thousands over erosion and sediment control on B.C. project
VICTORIA — Coastal GasLink Pipeline Ltd. has been fined more than $170,000 after inspectors found what the British Columbia government says were repeated issues of erosion and sediment control.
A statement from the Environmental Assessment Office says more than 40 inspections have been carried out along the pipeline construction route since the project began in 2019.
It says the company has been handed 37 warnings, 16 orders and two administrative penalties.
The statement says inspections along the right-of-way in the seven months ending in April found ongoing non-compliance for erosion and sediment control, which can affect water quality and fish habitats.
The first penalty handed out in February cost the company $72,500 and the office says the most recent and larger fine is part of an escalation of enforcement action.
The company said in a release last week that it was nearing 65 per cent completion of the 670-kilometre pipeline that spans northern B.C. from the Dawson Creek area to the LNG shipping facility near Kitimat.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 9, 2022.
The Canadian Press
Minister of Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson arrives to a cabinet meeting on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Tuesday, May 30, 2023. Wilkinson says Canada won’t be “cutting corners” as it overhauls the permitting process for energy projects. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Washington
Canada’s natural resources minister says he won’t be “cutting corners” when it comes to the environmental assessment process for energy projects.
Jonathan Wilkinson says the government is focused on delivering a new permitting process before the end of the year.
Industry experts say it’s more urgent than ever, now that the U.S. is poised to eliminate duplication and require shorter timelines for environmental assessments.
The U.S. permitting reforms are part of the new Fiscal Responsibility Act, the result of efforts to end the political standoff over the debt ceiling.
That controversy is still far from resolved, however: Congress is divided over the legislation, which aims to stave off a U.S. default before Monday.
If passed, the bill would create a new agency to oversee the permitting process and require environmental reviews take no longer than two years.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2023.
An ice-covered ConocoPhillips sign at the Colville-Delta 5, or as it’s more commonly known, CD5, drilling site on Alaska’s North Slope is shown on February 9, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Mark Thiessen
Calgary
ConocoPhillips says it will exercise its right of first refusal and purchase TotalEnergies’ 50 per cent stake in the Surmont oilsands project for $4 billion.
The Houston-based oil company is currently the operator and the 50 per cent owner of the in situ oilsands asset near Fort McMurray, Alta.
In April, Suncor Energy Inc. said it would acquire the other half of Surmont, part of a larger $6.1-billion deal that would also see Suncor acquire French company Total’s stake in the Fort Hills oilsands project.
But ConocoPhillips says it will pre-empt Suncor and purchase the remainder of Surmont for itself.
The company says it expects the deal will add approximately US$600 million of annual free cash flow in 2024, based on a West Texas Intermediate oil price of US$60.
The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2023, with an effective date of April 1, 2023.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 26, 2023.
Companies in this story: (TSX:SU)
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