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Pipeline projects battling for survival Enbridge hires Prentice in attempt to broker First Nations deal on Northern Gateway; Canadian government reaches out to Obama Gary Park For Petroleum News
In what could be among the final gambits to win over the U.S. and Canadian governments, high-level moves are being made to keep hope alive for the Enbridge Northern Gateway and TransCanada Keystone XL pipelines.
Enbridge has recruited Jim Prentice, a leading Canadian banker and highly respected former Canadian government cabinet minister, to explore a deal with First Nations and aboriginal communities in British Columbia and Alberta who oppose Northern Gateway pipeline.
TransCanada, although not directly involved in the initiative, may now be pinning its hopes on the Canadian government and Canada’s ambassador to the U.S. Gary Doer, to convince President Barack Obama there is room for the two countries to act jointly on regulations to limit greenhouse gas emissions.
That comes a month after Obama disclosed that he and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper have discussed new approaches to curbing Prentice said he was taking on the assignment because “I believe that First Nations should be full partners in resource development and they should be owners of projects like the Northern Gateway.”
Enbridge Chief Executive Officer Al Monaco said Enbridge believes Prentice is “uniquely suited” to fulfill its promise to built trust among aboriginal communities.
Prentice negotiated land claims As a corporate lawyer Prentice negotiated land claim settlements with First Nations before entering federal politics where he served under Prime Minister Stephen Harper as minister for Indian Affairs and Northern Development as well as environment minister before leaving government in 2011 to become vice chairman of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.
“This project can bring jobs, economic opportunity, community development and educational opportunities to First Nation Canadians,” he said in a statement, noting he has been given room to negotiate a deal that respects the jurisdiction of First Nations and the environment.
Northern Gateway is designed to export 525,000 barrels per day of oil sands bitumen and import 193,000 bpd of condensate on a twin pipeline, using Kitimat on the northern British Columbia coast as its terminal.
The appointment came a week after Prentice said Canada had no hope of building pipelines or LNG terminals in British Columbia unless it could establish “economic partnerships” with First Nations.
Speaking to a gathering of conservative-leaning politicians and business people, he said “there will be no pipelines to the West Coast, there will be no exports of Canada’s oil from the West Coast, or LNG terminals on the West Coast, unless we strike meaningful economic partnerships with First Nations.”
Daunting task In case there was any doubt, entrenched Northern Gateway opponents among First Nations leaders were quick to demonstrate the daunting task ahead of Prentice.
Many of them started legal challenges after the National Energy Board issued a condition-laden approval of the pipeline in December, leaving the federal cabinet with 180 days until June to make a final decision.
Monaco immediately declared that Enbridge would waste no time in trying to build bridges to aboriginal communities and said earlier in March that some progress has been made to increase support.
Prentice told reporters that it is “never too late” to engage in negotiations, or to make changes to a project.
The first call he received after his appointment was from Shawn Attleo, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, offering to meet.
But strongest foes among British Columbia First Nations showed no willingness to bend.
The Yinka Dene Alliance, which represents six First Nations whose territory occupies 25 percent of the pipeline route in north-central British Columbia, and the Coastal First Nations, CFN, suggested it is too late for Prentice to be involved.
Yinka Dene coordinator Geraldine Thomas-Fleurer told Petroleum News that her people will not agree to a pipeline that could threaten the safety of water and fish species, while CFN executive director Art Sterritt said Northern Gateway is and beyond rescuing by Prentice.
Canada would work with US On the Keystone XL front, Doer sent a letter dated Feb. 28 to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry pointing out that Canada is tackling climate change and is open to working with the U.S. “on a regulatory regime that will bring our emissions down.”
The letter said GHG emissions in both countries are down from a 2005 baseline level — with Canada claiming a 4.5 percent decrease — and Canada is “committed to further action.”
Doer said energy and environment officials in the U.S. and Canada, including U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Canada’s Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver, are discussing joint efforts to strengthen energy security and environmental protection, along with generating new economic benefits.
His submission notes that the State Department’s final environmental impact statement estimated that if the pipeline is not built, crude bitumen from the Alberta oil sands could be carried by rail into the U.S., resulting in emissions increasing by 28 percent to 42 percent.
It also said the research firm of IHS CERA calculated that emissions from oil sands crude are 12 percent higher than most crude refined in the U.S., but are on a par with those from Venezuela heavy crude that it would replace.
The State Department is in the final stages of determining whether Keystone XL is in the U.S. national interest — a process that is due to end in early May, reinforced by a reported comment Obama made recently to state governors that he expects to issue his final verdict within a couple of months.
John Bennett, a Canadian spokesman for the Sierra Club, rejected any promises by the Canadian government, insisting the only move that would matter would be a cap on GHG emissions.
The U.S. Congress has blocked a cap-and-trade plan, while Harper has rejected a carbon tax.
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