Lakeland MP Addresses Cancellation of Keystone XL Pipeline
Michelle Pinon
News Advertiser
Lakeland MP Shannon Stubbs was speaking in the House of Commons on January 28 on the cancellation of Keystone XL.
Stubbs stated, “The veto of Keystone XL wasn’t surprising but it was a major blow to tens of thousands of families in Alberta and across Canada.
Oil and gas is the biggest private sector investor in Canada’s economy, employs half a million Canadians, even after historic job losses under these Liberals and is crucial to secure the recovery. Canada’s oil and gas is world class with the highest environmental and social standards. The world needs and wants more Canadian oil and gas and so do Canadians, but Canada is wholly dependant on the US as a customer while Canadians in many regions have to rely on foreign oil with much lower standards due to the Liberals anti-energy agenda that killed the only west to east pipeline proposal stopped west coast shipping and will block future pipelines.
The Prime Minister shut down Canadian oil while the US ramped up. It’s now the world’s biggest producer and exporter and is eying line 5 which supplies Ontario and Quebec. The Liberals must reverse course to secure Canadian energy independence. Canadians need a Prime Minister who will secure jobs, secure our economy and secure our future.”
On January 21, Premier Jason Kenney stated, “While we welcome the President’s commitment to fight climate change, we are disappointed but acknowledge the President’s decision to fulfill his election campaign promise on Keystone XL,” read Trudeau’s statement on January 21 that was released just hours after Biden was officially sworn in as the U.S.’ 46th president.
Kenney also expressed his disappointment, and then demanded compensation from U.S. over Keystone XL in a statement on January 22.
On January 21 Premier Kenney stated, “The United States is our most important ally and trading partner. Amongst all of the Canadian provinces, Alberta has the deepest economic ties to the United States with $100 billion worth of exports, and strong social connections that go back over a century.
As friends and allies of the United States, we are deeply disturbed that one of President Biden’s first actions in office has been to rescind the Presidential permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline border crossing. My thoughts are with the 2,000 people who lost their jobs today, and all those who are coping with the devastating consequences of this decision.”
Last March, the Alberta government agreed to invest around $1.5 billion as equity in the Keystone XL project, along with billions more in loan guarantees.
According to a press release from TC Energy on January 17 from Houston, Texas it announced a new sustainable energy initiative for the Keystone XL Project. It stated in part, “The company will achieve net zero emissions across the project operations when it is placed into service in 2023 and has committed the operations will be fully powered by renewable energy sources no later than 2030.
As part of this announcement, TC Energy is expected to spur an investment of over US$1.7 billion in communities along the Keystone XL footprint creating approximately 1.6 gigawatts of renewable electric capacity, and thousands of construction jobs in rural and Indigenous communities.
“At TC Energy, we are firmly committed to being part of the transition to the next generation of energy sources. Climate change is a serious issue and we have an important role to play in managing GHG emissions while balancing the need for safe, reliable and economic energy,” said François Poirier, President and Chief Executive Officer of TC Energy.
