Hopes of building a bridge between First Nations and the proponents of four crude oil pipelines - Keystone XL, Northern Gateway, Trans Mountain and Energy East - may be down to their last chance.
But the chance of success may be better than at any recent time as Jim Prentice moves into the Alberta premier’s office, having been elected leader of the province’s governing Progressive Conservative party on Sept. 6.
It is doubtful if anyone else could bring a better set of experience, natural conciliation skills and integrity to his dealings with the energy industry and the aboriginal community.
And no one has shown greater determination to overcome the obstacles to energy development and exports by seeking alternatives to time-work arguments.
A long resume
In his early days after graduating from university he was law commissioner for the Indian Claims Commission of Canada, which placed him in the front lines of negotiating treaty rights.
On entering the Canadian Parliament he was quickly identified as a key adviser to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who seldom draws on the abilities of those around him, and until stepping aside from politics in 2010 he served as minister of the environment, industry and aboriginal affairs in Harper’s cabinet.
From 2010 to 2014 he was vice chairman of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, CIBC, one of Canada’s five big banks, and used that position to advocate vigorously for approval of pipelines to open new export markets for oil sands crude, while applying pressure on the industry to take a more serious role in protecting the environment.
As a cabinet minister and a banker he was active in promoting Keystone XL in Washington and across Canada, fending off the slings and arrows of environmental activists and non-government organizations and remaining calm under attack from the Ontario and Quebec governments during the Copenhagen climate conference in 2009.
US relations
Prentice has also suggested the U.S. and Canadian governments have been “preoccupied by a dispute over a single pipeline (Keystone XL)” to the detriment of their trade relationship.
He said the two countries “must move beyond this distraction” to harmonize national energy standards, instead of leaving them to a patchwork of state and municipal rules.
He also said the U.S. and Canada should work together on environmental policies that are in their mutual interest, while building the necessary infrastructure to export both oil and LNG to international markets.
When it comes to Keystone XL, Prentice has earned a high regard in Washington, D.C., said Gary Doer, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S. and a former Manitoba premier.
“He knows the people (in the U.S. administration) and he’s worked and got agreements before (including a 2010 agreement when Prentice was Canada’s environment minister on tougher light vehicle emissions standards). The premier-elect is very effective in Washington, believe me,” Doer said.
He said the current court case in Nebraska over whether Gov. Dave Heineman had the authority to approve the routing of Keystone XL should not stop the Obama administration from settling the fate of the pipeline.
Doer said President Barack Obama could approve Keystone XL today if he simply listened to scientists, but “if he goes with who’s loudest, who knows?”
Working with First Nations
In March, Prentice was selected by the CIBC to work as a consultant with Enbridge on boosting aboriginal support for Northern Gateway, a job that was left largely unfinished in June when he entered the unexpected contest for leadership of the Conservative party, which has an unbroken string of 43 years in office in Alberta.
But in that short time he was able to build on his existing relationship with First Nations, gaining a measure of respect from aboriginal leaders without satisfying their concerns about the project.
Enbridge said it was “pleased with the progress” Prentice made in engaging with aboriginal leaders and starting a dialogue with First Nations.
Stewart Phillip, grand chief of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, said he has come to respect the willingness of the former land-claims negotiator to hear every point of view.
“I think Mr. Prentice is an intelligent, perceptive man. He deeply considers the landscape,” Phillip said.
But he said that from the outset of his Northern Gateway assignment, Prentice was “set the unenviable task of resuscitating a dead horse. I think he underestimated the deeply entrenched opposition” to the pipeline.
However, Phillip said Prentice may now be better equipped to inject creative solutions to the growing energy impasse in Canada.
“There’s got to be better, more creative solutions than simply pumping heavy oil sludge from the tar sands to the West Coast,” he said. “Who knows? Maybe he will look toward other solutions.”
Art Sterritt, executive director of British Columbia’s Coastal First Nations, said nobody is “better suited to working with First Nations out of Alberta” than Prentice.
He said the new premier has a clear grasp of aboriginal issues and the ability to move industry to new positions- credentials that could open the way to fresh negotiations.
Ellis Ross, chief councilor for the Haisla Nation, which is involved as an equity partner in LNG projects, said he does not see how Prentice can bring warring sides together on Northern Gateway, least of all when the Haisla Nation said the duty to consult applies to the government of British Columbia, not Alberta.
Pipeline strategy?
Prentice, despite his progressive leanings, has raised questions about whether he will seize the controls and change Alberta’s course on the environment.
So far he has done little other than reiterate the views of his predecessors and the Canadian government that the objective is “world-class” regulation and monitoring of the energy industry by applying advances in science and technology.
At the same time, he has argued against taking the initiative in a way that would “damage the competitiveness of our oil and gas industry by unilaterally imposing costs and regulations.”
Northern Gateway President John Carruthers told reporters he has confidence that Prentice can sway the thinking among First Nations, but conceded that more time is needed to cut deals with those communities.
Ivor Ruste, chief financial officer of Cenovus Energy, which is a committed shipper on all of the pipeline projects, said Prentice is clear-headed on the importance of developing the oil sands resource for Canada’s economic benefit.
“Getting pipeline and transportation access to markets should be at the top of his list and he has indicated he understands that,” Ruste said.
Although Prentice has said nothing about his strategy for pipelines since being elected premier, he has staked out a number of consistent positions over the past two years.
He slammed both the Canadian government and the oil industry for complacency and failing to meet their constitutional obligation to consult with and accommodate the concerns of First Nations, especially in regard to Northern Gateway.
Prentice also said during the leadership campaign that Alberta should take a greater responsibility for the environmental risks posed by its pipelines by working more closely with First Nations and affected provinces.
“The product that is going to be shipped is our product and, as Albertans, we have to satisfy people that it can be done safely,” he said, adding that the Alberta government must continue with the work of building a stronger coalition with First Nations.
