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When you fill up your tank, thank our “petrodollar”
Last night, I wrote a long post on exchange rates, and discussed the impact of the Canadian dollar appreciation on our purchasing power. As usual, the best way to demonstrate that increase in...
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More on upgrading and refining in Alberta
This week, the question of whether or not and, if so, how, the Government of Alberta should encourage upgrading and/or refining of bitumen in the province is back on the front page. Much of this...
View ArticleQuestions I’ll be asking #abvote candidates
What will determine my vote on April 23rd? I suppose it will surprise no one that I will vote based on the energy and environmental policies of the parties. My key issue list includes 5 categories: 1)...
View ArticleYour oilsands royalty primer
Bitumen royalties accounted for 10% of total Alberta government revenues in 2010-2011, and that is expected (according to the most recent Alberta Budget) to climb to approximately 20% of total...
View ArticleDifferential royalties for upgraded vs. non-upgraded bitumen
Tonight, I am looking for some informed opinions on a topic about which I do not know much. I spent some time this evening looking into whether a differential royalty regime for oilsands bitumen based...
View ArticleThe #climate and GHG question I would have asked
In today’s Edmonton Journal/Calgary Herald on-line leaders debate (a great format, BTW), the leaders were asked the following question: Do you believe in climate change? What should be the provincial...
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Refine it where you mine it?
The question of what, if anything, Alberta should do to encourage more upgrading or refining in the province will be an important one regardless of which party wins the election on Monday. This...
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Let’s make the right arguments on the EU FQD
Today, with great praise from industry, a new report, commissioned by the Alberta Government, on oilsands GHG emissions was released. This report, by Jacobs Consultancy, assesses the degree to which...
View ArticleENMAX solar power – a different definition of affordable
Today, I received a nice offer in my mailbox from utility company ENMAX. These offers often make me angry because I find that they prey on people’s lack of information regarding electricity units and...
View ArticleSigning off
Dear Readers, This afternoon, I am pleased and excited to inform all of you that I have accepted a secondment to Environment Canada during my sabbatical year from July 2012 through June 2013. I will be...
View ArticleSigning back on!
Hello again! After a wonderful year spent on secondment to Environment Canada, I will be re-activating my FrogBlog. I’ve missed the conversations generated by this blog greatly, and so I am looking...
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On bubbles of bitumen
On January 24th, Premier Redford used a televised address to Albertans to declare that price discounts for Alberta bitumen would lead Alberta to a significant deficit position – “this ‘bitumen bubble’...
View ArticleEnergy East
Last night, Darcy Henton filed a story which detailed a memorandum of understanding between the Alberta government and TransCanada with respect to the proposed Energy East Pipeline from Alberta to...
View ArticleMégantic and the BP Spill
The scale and scope of the terrible tragedy in Lac Mégantic, Quebec is only begining to sink in, and my thoughts are certainly with the victims and their families at this time. In the midst of the...
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On Keystone XL and gas prices
Today, a post has been making the rounds which claims that the Keystone XL pipeline would raise gas prices in the US Midwest by, “20 to 40 cents per gallon, based on the $20 to $30 per barrel discount...
View ArticleCNRL incident(s) at Primrose
I read Dan Healing’s article on the CNRL surface emulsion release incident at Primrose/Wolf Lake, Emma Pullman’s DeSmog Blog piece, and the Alberta Energy Regulator’s news release release. I’ll admit I...
View ArticleValue-added, externalities and eggs
Today, what I initially thought was a mildly controversial statement about upstream vs. downstream profitability and value-added led to me finding myself with a little bit of egg on my face and also...
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Energy East, again.
This post previously published at Maclean’s and Canadian Business Magazine It’s been a week since TransCanada announced that it had secured sufficient commercial commitments and would be proceeding...
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Energy security and Energy East
During his visit to the Irving Refinery on August 8th, Prime Minister Stephen Harper stated that the Energy East pipeline was not just about moving Alberta’s energy to markets, but that (the...
View ArticleReading the National Energy Program
As a non-native-Albertan academic (in particular one from back east), I have learned that there are two golden rules to follow when in Alberta – don’t mention the National Energy Program, and don’t...
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