Energy
Take Notice – Question the Net Zero Agenda, and You’re Out the Door
Former Manitoba Hydro CEO Jay Grewal Photo from the Winnipeg Free Press
The other week the CEO of Manitoba Hydro was ousted from her position by the utility’s NDP appointed Board of Directors. This story likely won’t get much attention outside of Manitoba, but it should. Why? Because it illuminates just how overzealous the Net Zero cult has become.
Now-former CEO Jay Grewal was appointed in 2019 as CEO of Manitoba Hydro under Brian Palliser’s Progressive Conservatives. Ms. Grewal is an accomplished executive with decades of experience and impeccable credentials. She was the utility’s first female CEO, and by all accounts handled her role well, “leading the utility through significant challenges, including two droughts, a severe snowstorm and the COVID-19 pandemic,” in the words of NDP Finance Minister Adrien Sala, who oversees Hydro.
So, what was the issue? Well, according to the Winnipeg Free Press, the NDP government decreed that Manitoba Hydro “chart a path to achieve a net-zero energy grid by 2035.” And Ms. Grewal, because she knows her brief, described that mandate as “not feasible.” That is, it can’t be done.
What did this quite sensible position, grounded in reality, get her? Fired.
The story goes that Ms. Grewal, speaking off the cuff at a public event, suggested the wind and solar build-out Manitoba Hydro had committed to was best financed privately, not through the public utility, given the huge costs and uncertainties involved. Daring to suggest private investment in the world of crown utilities is putting a red flag before a bull, and the NDP “crown ownership is sacrosanct” bull flew into a rage. This may have been the fatal mistake that made Grewal’s firing a sure thing. Minister Sala clamped down on that one right away, releasing a statement which said that “the NDP government expects new generating assets to be publicly owned.” Sorry tax-payers!
But why is there even discussion of a big solar and wind build out? Because that is part of the net zero mantra.
Manitoba Hydro is a large utility, delivering reliable electricity and gas energy to hundreds of thousands of Manitobans. And the province is not in great financial shape. According to a government report from December, Manitoba’s forecasted deficit has ballooned to over $1.6 billion. As it stands Manitobans pay 33 cents for every dollar of their Hydro bill to service interest on the NDP Hydro debt, according to Grant Jackson, PC shadow minister for Manitoba Hydro. The utility is key to the province’s long-term economic wellbeing. And the affordable, reliable power the utility delivers is key to getting Manitoba into better financial shape.
That doesn’t seem to matter much to Premier Kinew and his NDP government. What matters is adherence to the ideology. They don’t want a steady hand at the tiller, they want a green rubber stamp on all of their questionable decisions. A “Yes Man.” Or, in this case, a Yes Woman.
I suspect that Ms. Grewal went along with as much as she did against her better judgement. Her net zero comment shows that she’s a woman of sense. As does her suggestion that there be private-sector partners to help fund new projects.
But in the end, going along to get along didn’t do her or the province any good. “Give ‘em an inch, and they’ll take a mile,” is the old expression, and that’s always the way with green ideologues. Their demands are never ending, and before you know it, our way of life is fundamentally altered.
Leaders in business across Canada should take note of this episode, because it shows that it doesn’t work to feed the crocodile in the hope that he’ll eat you last. What Canada needs right now is men and women who will stand up and speak clearly, who are willing to say no to net zero and its economy-destroying demands.
Good for Ms. Grewal for speaking the truth. Hopefully the next time she does, she’ll add that the Net Zero madness is not only “unachievable” but “irresponsible” and “un-Canadian” as well.
“If Ottawa had it’s way Albertans would be left to freeze in the dark”
The ineffective federal net-zero electricity regulations will not reduce emissions or benefit Albertans but will increase costs and lead to supply shortages.
The risk of power outages during a hot summer or the depths of harsh winter cold snaps, are not unrealistic outcomes if these regulations are implemented. According to the Alberta Electric System Operator’s analysis, the regulations in question would make Alberta’s electricity system more than 100 times less reliable than the province’s supply adequacy standard. Albertans expect their electricity to remain affordable and reliable, but implementation of these regulations could increase costs by a staggering 35 per cent.
Canada’s constitution is clear. Provinces have exclusive jurisdiction over the development, conservation and management of sites and facilities in the province for the generation and production of electrical energy. That is why Alberta’s government is referring the constitutionality of the federal government’s recent net-zero electricity regulations to the Court of Appeal of Alberta.
“The federal government refused to work collaboratively or listen to Canadians while developing these regulations. The results are ineffective, unachievable and irresponsible, and place Albertans’ livelihoods – and more importantly, lives – at significant risk. Our government will not accept unconstitutional net-zero regulations that leave Albertans vulnerable to blackouts in the middle of summer and winter when they need electricity the most.”
“The introduction of the Clean Electricity Regulations in Alberta by the federal government is another example of dangerous federal overreach. These regulations will create unpredictable power outages in the months when Albertans need reliable energy the most. They will also cause power prices to soar in Alberta, which will hit our vulnerable the hardest.”
Finalized in December 2024, the federal electricity regulations impose strict carbon limits on fossil fuel power, in an attempt to force a net-zero grid, an unachievable target given current technology and infrastructure. The reliance on unproven technologies makes it almost impossible to operate natural gas plants without costly upgrades, threatening investment, grid reliability, and Alberta’s energy security.
“Ottawa’s electricity regulations will leave Albertans in the dark. They aren’t about reducing emissions – they are unconstitutional, ideological activist policies based on standards that can’t be met and technology that doesn’t exist. It will drive away investment and punish businesses, provinces and families for using natural gas for reliable, dispatchable power. We will not put families at risk from safety and affordability impacts – rationing power during the coldest days of the year – and we will continue to stand up for Albertans.”
“Albertans depend on electricity to provide for their families, power their businesses and pursue their dreams. The federal government’s Clean Electricity Regulations threaten both the affordability and reliability of our power grid, and we will not stand by as these regulations put the well-being of Albertans at risk.”
Related information
- Conference Board of Canada socio-economic Impacts of Canada’s 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan – (April 2025)
- Alberta Electric System Operator’s position on Canadian Energy Regulations
Oh, Canada
We find it endlessly fascinating that most Canadians believe they live in a representative democracy, where aspiring candidates engage in authentic politicking to earn their place in office. So accustomed are Canada’s power brokers to getting their way, they rarely bother to cover their tracks. A careful reading of the notoriously pliant Canadian press makes anticipating future events in the country surprisingly straightforward.
Back in December, when Pierre Poilievre was given better than 90% odds of replacing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau—and Mark Carney was still just an uncharismatic banker few had heard of—we engaged in some not-so-speculative dot-connecting and correctly predicted Carney’s rise to the top spot. Our interest was driven by the notoriously rocky relationship between Ottawa and the Province of Alberta, home to one of the world’s largest hydrocarbon reserves, and how Carney’s rise might be a catalyst for resetting Canada’s energy trajectory. In a follow-up article titled “The Fix Is In,” we laid out a few more predictions:
“Here’s how the play is likely to unfold in the weeks and months ahead: Carney will be elected Prime Minister on April 28 by a comfortable margin; [Alberta Premier Danielle] Smith will trigger a constitutional crisis, providing cover for Carney to strike a grand bargain that finally resolves longstanding tensions between the provinces and Ottawa; and large infrastructure permitting reform will fall into place. Protests against these developments will be surprisingly muted, and those who do take to the streets will be largely ignored by the media. The entire effort will be wrapped in a thicket of patriotism, with Trump portrayed as a threat even greater than climate change itself. References to carbon emissions will slowly fade…
In parallel, we expect Trump and Carney to swiftly strike a favorable deal on tariffs, padding the latter’s bona fides just as his political capital will be most needed.”
The votes have barely been counted, yet the next moves are already unfolding…
“Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she’ll make it easier for citizens to initiate a referendum on the province’s future in Canada, after warning that a Liberal win in Monday’s election could spur a groundswell of support for Alberta separatism. Smith said on Tuesday that a newly tabled elections bill will give everyday Albertans a bigger say in the province’s affairs.
‘(We’re giving) Albertans more ways to be directly involved in democracy, and to have their say on issues that matter to them,’ Smith told reporters in Edmonton.
If passed, the new law would dramatically lower the number of signatures needed to put a citizen-proposed constitutional referendum question on the ballot, setting a new threshold of 10 per cent of general election turnout — or just over 175,000, based on Alberta’s last provincial election in 2023.”
“US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is looking to make a trade deal and will visit the White House within the next week. Trump said he congratulated Carney on his election victory when the Canadian leader called on Tuesday.
‘He called me up yesterday – he said let’s make a deal,’ Trump told reporters at the White House after a televised Cabinet meeting.”
Remember where you read it first.
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