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Kyoto puts British Columbia’s energy goals at risk
Gary Park, PNA Canadian correspondent
British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell says the Canadian government’s ill-considered strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions puts a cloud over his province’s hopes of attracting C$24 billion (US$15.4 billion) in new energy spending over the next six years.
If the federal government presses ahead with its plan to impose the Kyoto Protocol “without looking at the economic costs ... without looking at our competitive position, it’s simply going to fail,” he told Ziff Energy’s North American Gas Strategies conference in Calgary Oct. 28.
“We still have yet to hear from the federal government what their targets are. We’ve yet to hear how they expect those targets to be met. We’ve yet to hear how they expect to mitigate the economic damage in our province,” he said.
Campbell said British Columbia is ready to emerge as a major North American energy player by developing resources estimated at 18 billion barrels of oil, 110 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, 90 trillion cubic feet of coalbed methane gas and 20 billion metric tonnes of coal.
On track with goal of doubling output by 2011 Its goal of doubling crude oil and natural gas output by 2011 is well on track after a 22 percent hike in 2001 to 5.8 billion barrels of oil equivalent and will be accelerated by tax cuts to attract more business and revive a struggling economy, he said.
But preliminary assessment indicate that the Kyoto Protocol could wipe out 11,000 jobs and chop 0.5 percent off the Gross Domestic Product — an “unacceptable” result, Campbell said.
Pierre Alvarez, president of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, agreed the Campbell government is making headway in removing regulatory obstacles, but he said the geology will ultimately determine whether it can achieve its objectives.
Brian Prokop, an analyst with Peters & Co., said the government has set itself a tough target to double production by 2011, given that coalbed methane and the offshore are two of the key planks and both are long-term projects given the environmental and technology challenges they face.
That leaves the interior foothills of northeastern British Columbia as the best immediate hope to boost conventional development, he said.
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