Pembina Pipeline reports oil leak near Swan Hills
By Dave Cooper, edmontonjournal.com, July 20, 2011
Pipeline has been shut in, cleanup has started
EDMONTON - Pembina Pipeline Ltd. (PPL:TSX) estimates 1,300 barrels of crude oil has leaked into the pipeline right of way and a nearby unnamed creek about five kilometres north of Swan Hills.
Black day for green jobs: Feds prepare to cut environmental agency
By Amy Minsky, Postmedia News, Vancouver Sun, July 20, 2011
OTTAWA — The federal government will slash funding to the environmental agency that evaluates potentially harmful policies and projects before they get the green light.
China’s CNOOC to buy OPTI Canada for $2.1-billion
Carrie Tait, Globe and Mail, Jul. 20, 2011
China has agreed to make another multibillion-investment in Canada’s oil sands, this time striking a deal to buy OPTI Canada Inc., the struggling energy company that filed for bankruptcy protection last week.
Alberta oil jobs flowing away as bitumen processed out-of-country
By Karen Kleiss, Calgary Herald July 19, 2011
Government projections show the percentage of the province’s bitumen upgraded by Albertans will plunge as low as 50 per cent in coming years, shattering Premier Ed Stelmach’s five-year-old promise to keep upgrading jobs at home.
Korean firm a possible Mackenzie pipeline bidder
The Canadian Press, Jul 18, 2011
Korea's state-owned natural gas company may be interested in snapping up Royal Dutch Shell PLC's stake in the Mackenzie Valley pipeline, an energy consultant said Monday.
NEB working on plan to improve pipeline safety and environmental protection
Canadian Business, July 18, 2011
CALGARY - The National Energy Board says it is coming up with an action plan to make oil and natural gas pipelines safer for workers and the environment.
The federal agency says it will also wants to improve how companies prepare and respond to emergencies.
Cooking up a National Energy Strategy in Kananaskis
Matt Price, The Tyee, July 16, 2011
Will ministers let oil industry dictate the recipe? And thumb their nose at the world?
Here's a puzzler for you:
Shell pulls the pin on Mackenzie Delta
David Ebner and Tim Kiladze, Globe and Mail, Jul. 15, 2011
Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDS.A-N71.900.590.83%) is giving up on the Mackenzie Delta, pulling out of the region 38 years after it first discovered a massive deposit of natural gas.
ecoENERGY - Back in Action
Natural Resources Canada, July 13, 2011
- home energy-efficiency retrofits
- grants up to $5,000
- $400 million total program for 2011-2012
- deadline March 31, 2012
- ecoaction.gc.ca/homes
Saskatchewan’s crude hopes dashed as Oil Sands Quest takes a beating
Frik Els, Mining.com, July 12, 2011
Proving that nothing is a sure bet – not even the development of prime bitumen fields – Oilsands Quest on Tuesday suffered a second day of heavy losses, dropping 10% shortly after the open.
National energy strategy gains clout
Shawn McCarthy, Globe and Mail, Jul. 10, 2011
Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver says Canada clearly needs 'a more national approach' on a range of energy issues |
The Harper government has endorsed the need for a national energy strategy in the face of growing calls from provinces and industry groups that the sector’s vision of a new era of global growth is too critical to be governed by piecemeal planning.
Ottawa faces crucial test in the fight against coal
Clare Demerse, Pembina Institute, July 5, 2011
Just over a year ago, the federal government announced a plan to regulate some of the dirtiest sources of energy in Canada — coal power plants. Now, a decision by an Alberta regulator to approve a new coal plant has put the ball squarely in the federal government's court to live up to one part of that 2010 announcement, namely a commitment to "guard against" companies rushing new coal plants into service in an attempt to skirt the federal proposal.
Several factors at play in future of oil-and-gas investments: analysts
By Ray Turchansky, For Postmedia News, July 8, 2011
The good news for Canadian energy companies is that better stock market returns are anticipated
Britain's richest man to build giant Arctic iron ore mine
Terry Macalister, guardian.co.uk, 4 July 2011
Lakshmi Mittal's 'mega-mine' is believed to be the largest mineral extraction project in the region but threatens unique wildlife
Britain's richest man is planning a giant new opencast mine 300 miles inside the Arctic Circle in a bid to extract a potential $23bn (£14bn) worth of iron ore.
A pipeline in peril
NATHAN VANDERKLIPPE, Globe and Mail, Jul. 02, 2011
Even in the midst of a potentially life-threatening challenge, TransCanada Corp.’s (TRP-T42.35----%)Mainline carries more natural gas than any other pipeline system in North America. Quiet and unseen, it is Canada’s underground energy superhighway, a network of pipes crossing from Prairies to Canadian Shield to urban centres that for more than half a century has carried Alberta’s gas to the eastern stretches of the continent.
Foreign environmentalists want review of Alberta oilsands plan
By Keith Gerein, Edmonton Journal, June 18, 2011
EDMONTON — A collection of environmental groups from the United States and Europe are calling on the Alberta government to form an independent panel of experts to assess concerns with a new provincial land-use plan for the oilsands region.
National Energy Board: Captured Regulator?
By Andrew Nikiforuk, TheTyee.ca, June 17, 2011
What happens when watchdog becomes lapdog? Nikiforuk's latest ENERGY & EQUITY inquiry.
The Economist magazine once described "regulatory capture" as a simple case of a gamekeeper behaving like a poacher.
Oil industry outlines cleanup strategy for Arctic spill
NATHAN VANDERKLIPPE, Globe and Mail, Jun. 09, 2011
As the oil and gas industry works to convince Canada’s energy regulator that it can safely drill in the Arctic’s deep waters, it is proposing some creative – and controversial – methods to clean up spills in sea ice: using fires set from helicopters to burn oil and even the propeller blades of icebreakers to disperse it.
Canada confirms it will reject new Kyoto Protocol
Gerard Wynn, Reuters, Jun 8, 2011
BONN, Germany (Reuters) - Canada confirmed on Wednesday that it would not support an extended Kyoto Protocol after 2012, joining Japan and Russia in rejecting a new round of the climate emissions pact.
Oil Sands Project in Canada Will Go On if Pipeline Is Blocked
By IAN AUSTEN, New York Times, June 6, 2011
OTTAWA — One way or another — by rail or ship or a network of pipelines — Canada will export oil from its vast northern oil sands projects to the United States and other markets.
Norman Wells spilled 90 barrels
Calgary Herald, June 4, 2011
RUPTURE . Enbridge Inc. said Friday a leak on its Norman Wells oil pipeline spilled at least 90 barrels in the remote Northwest Territories, substantially more than the four barrels originally reported.
Board ordered pressure decrease
By Mike De Souza, Regina Leader Post, Postmedia News, June 3, 2011
Safety fears prompted regulator's decision
Safety concerns about potential ruptures along two major oil and gas routes prompted federal regulators to order the operators to reduce pressure on the pipelines travelling underground through some of the largest cities in western and Central Canada, Postmedia News has learned.
Billions in Chinese investment hinge on pipeline capacity
By Chris Varcoe, Edmonton Journal, Postmedia News, May 30, 2011
We need fossil fuels, Alberta delegation to Shanghai told
Gearing up for a new labour crunch
NATHAN VANDERKLIPPE, Globe and Mail, May 22, 2011
Canada’s oil patch is scrambling to bring back foreign workers, desperate to avoid a repeat of the labour crunch that clobbered the industry three years ago.
Manitoba connects with Minnesota on power deal
Bruce Owen, Winnipeg Free Press, May 25, 2011
WINNIPEG — A combined power deal between Minnesota and Wisconsin will kick off the construction of a new dam in northern Manitoba.
