Alberta
US lawmakers and citizens voice preference for Canada to replace Russian imports via Keystone XL revival
President Biden cancelled major pipeline from Canada on his first day in office
From The Canadian Energy Centre Ltd.
On the heels of President Biden’s ban on the import of all Russian oil and gas products, a new poll shows that 71 per cent of Americans think Biden should reverse his decision to cancel the Keystone XL pipeline, while 64 per cent believe Canadian production should replace Russian oil.
The U.S. bought 640,000 barrels per day on average of oil and petroleum products from Russia between July and December, according to the latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The Keystone XL pipeline would have had capacity to ship 830,000 barrels per day from Western Canada to the U.S. refineries, starting in 2023.
Instead of looking to America’s largest trading partner, Canada, to increase oil exports, the White House is turningto regimes like Saudi Arabia, Iran and Venezuela.
Maintaining a secure and reliable supply of energy products has never been more important.
US leaders continue to challenge the year-old decision to cancel the Keystone XL pipeline expansion project, calling for its reinstatement.
Here’s what they had to say this week:
Senator John Boozman (AR) tweeted:
Pulling the plug on the Keystone XL Pipeline hurt Americans. It cost 1000s of jobs—many in Arkansas—and a cleaner, faster energy supply. Restarting this project & opening up domestic oil & gas deposits will benefit American consumers & our allies abroad.
Senator Shelley Moore Capito (WV) tweeted:
Why are West Virginians paying more at the pump?
– No domestic production on federal lands
– Cancelation of Keystone XL pipeline
– Anti-fossil fuel policies
– Record inflation
– Pipeline buildout prevention
Decisions have consequences, @potus, and it’s time to take responsibility.
Senator Bill Hagerty (TN) tweeted:
Biden should be announcing today that we’re reopening the Keystone XL Pipeline, that we’re going to be drilling on federal lands. We need to become energy independent again now—not driving up prices around the world & fueling Vladimir Putin’s war machine.
Instead of ineffective green energy fanaticism, the Biden Administration needs to come out and clearly state that we’re going to reopen the Keystone XL pipeline, that we’re going to get back in the energy business, and that we’re going to become energy independent again.
Biden’s work with our adversaries for energy has to stop! And we could stop it—re-open the Keystone XL pipeline, DRILL, get back in the energy business, & remove this massive lever that Vladimir Putin has over the American economy. Biden could and should do this TODAY.
Senator Ron Johnson (WI) tweeted:
When President Biden got into office, he canceled the Keystone XL Pipeline, ignored the crisis at the southern border, and pushed for out-of-control government spending that sparked inflation rates we haven’t seen in decades. Democrat policies have weakened America.
Senator Rick Scott (FL) tweeted:
Joe Biden’s war on American energy is why gas prices have skyrocketed. Does he care that this hurts working families? Nope.
Biden has been bragging about his failed policies, like killing the Keystone Pipeline. Americans can’t afford this shameful indifference. #BidensPriceHike
RT: @MikeKBerg “Joe Biden on the campaign trail: “I guarantee you, I guarantee you we are going to end fossil fuel.” Now gas prices are at record highs and Biden says his policies aren’t to blame?
Senator Roger Wicker (MS) said:
President Biden’s hostile plans for American energy came into view in 2019 when he told his far-left supporters, “I guarantee you, we are going to end fossil fuel.” Since taking office, he has been working overtime to cut production of U.S. oil, natural gas, and coal. Last year, he ended the Keystone XL pipeline project, halted new oil and gas leases on federal lands and waters, banned drilling in oil-rich parts of Alaska, and rejoined the Paris Climate Agreement, all of which will kill American energy jobs. These decisions have driven up energy costs and made it harder for us to absorb recent price surges stemming from Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA) said:
Under President Biden’s leadership, energy imports from Russia increased by 34%. This administration has not only stalled oil and natural gas exports to our allies, but has blocked further energy transportation infrastructure in the U.S., like the Keystone XL Pipeline, while supporting projects abroad, like Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline. With investments in our own pipeline infrastructure, American refineries could have easy access to Canadian crude oil instead of Russian oil.
Rep. Troy Balderson (OH) tweeted:
Bad for American energy independence:
❌ Canceling Keystone XL Pipeline
❌ Halting energy leases on federal lands
❌ Greenlighting Russia’s Nord Stream 2
❌ Begging OPEC for oil
❌ Punishing producer w/ new taxes and fees
Rep. Lauren Boebert (CO) tweeted:
My bill, H.R. 7012, restarts the Keystone Pipeline, allows responsible drilling in ANWR, expedites LNG exports, restarts O&G leasing, provides ammo to Ukraine, and actually bans oil and gas imports from Russia, Iran, and Venezuela. This is the real solution America needs!
Rep. Kat Cammack (FL) tweeted:
There was no funding for authorizing the restart of the Keystone pipeline, and this administration has not approved a single permit since they took office.
We need to get serious about domestic energy production.
Rep. Randy Feenstra (IA) tweeted:
During my 39 county tour stops, Iowans tell me they want America to be energy independent again. We should build the Keystone XL Pipeline and increase ethanol and biodiesel. It’s time to end our reliance on foreign energy! #IA04
Rep. Mark Green (TN) tweeted:
By blocking our own pipeline but allowing others, Joe Biden has made it clear that both climate change and American jobs are just a political game to him.
Rep. Lisa McClain (MI) tweeted:
One of President Biden’s first actions in office was to shut down the Keystone XL pipeline.
As much as gas prices right now are a result of Putin’s war, they’re also a direct result of Biden’s poor policies.
Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY) tweeted:
On his first day in office, Joe Biden made his anti-energy agenda clear.
He ended the Keystone XL pipeline and launched his war on American energy independence.
Rep. Claudia Tenney (NY) tweeted:
What should Biden do to increase energy production?
✅ End his freeze on new oil and gas projects
✅ Restart construction of Keystone XL Pipeline
✅ Fast-track pending export permits for liquified natural gas (LNG)
Rep. Bruce Westerman (AR) tweeted:
@POTUS can’t gaslight the American people into believing Putin is the only reason for increased gas prices.
Gas prices started to rise from Biden’s first day in office when he launched his war on American energy.
He made this bed. Now we have to lie in it.
Governor Greg Abbott (TX) tweeted:
New poll: Large majority of Americans unhappy with Biden’s handling of high gas prices.
Ya think?
He caused it when he closed pipelines & canceled oil & gas permits.
If you stop production and transportation of oil, the price of gas goes up.
From the Fraser Institute
By Spencer Gudewill and Tegan Hill
Last November, Premier Danielle Smith announced that her government will give up to $1.8 billion in subsidies to Dow Chemicals, which plans to expand a petrochemical project northeast of Edmonton. In other words, $1.8 billion in corporate welfare.
And this is just one example of corporate welfare paid for by Albertans.
According to a recent study published by the Fraser Institute, from 2007 to 2021, the latest year of available data, the Alberta government spent $31.0 billion (inflation-adjusted) on subsidies (a.k.a. corporate welfare) to select firms and businesses, purportedly to help Albertans. And this number excludes other forms of government handouts such as loan guarantees, direct investment and regulatory or tax privileges for particular firms and industries. So the total cost of corporate welfare in Alberta is likely much higher.
Why should Albertans care?
First off, there’s little evidence that corporate welfare generates widespread economic growth or jobs. In fact, evidence suggests the contrary—that subsidies result in a net loss to the economy by shifting resources to less productive sectors or locations (what economists call the “substitution effect”) and/or by keeping businesses alive that are otherwise economically unviable (i.e. “zombie companies”). This misallocation of resources leads to a less efficient, less productive and less prosperous Alberta.
And there are other costs to corporate welfare.
For example, between 2007 and 2019 (the latest year of pre-COVID data), every year on average the Alberta government spent 35 cents (out of every dollar of business income tax revenue it collected) on corporate welfare. Given that workers bear the burden of more than half of any business income tax indirectly through lower wages, if the government reduced business income taxes rather than spend money on corporate welfare, workers could benefit.
Moreover, Premier Smith failed in last month’s provincial budget to provide promised personal income tax relief and create a lower tax bracket for incomes below $60,000 to provide $760 in annual savings for Albertans (on average). But in 2019, after adjusting for inflation, the Alberta government spent $2.4 billion on corporate welfare—equivalent to $1,034 per tax filer. Clearly, instead of subsidizing select businesses, the Smith government could have kept its promise to lower personal income taxes.
Finally, there’s the Heritage Fund, which the Alberta government created almost 50 years ago to save a share of the province’s resource wealth for the future.
In her 2024 budget, Premier Smith earmarked $2.0 billion for the Heritage Fund this fiscal year—almost the exact amount spent on corporate welfare each year (on average) between 2007 and 2019. Put another way, the Alberta government could save twice as much in the Heritage Fund in 2024/25 if it ended corporate welfare, which would help Premier Smith keep her promise to build up the Heritage Fund to between $250 billion and $400 billion by 2050.
By eliminating corporate welfare, the Smith government can create fiscal room to reduce personal and business income taxes, or save more in the Heritage Fund. Any of these options will benefit Albertans far more than wasteful billion-dollar subsidies to favoured firms.
Authors:
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