Teck withdraws application for Frontier Mine

[Anonymous]

It was an open secret Trudeau's cabinet was going to reject Teck Frontier. Along with Petronas LNG, Northern Gateway, Energy East, the stalled TMX, the Trudeau regime is responsible for $130 billion dollars in lost resource investment and 90,000 jobs.



SHELVED



CALGARY — Less than a week before the federal government's deadline to determine the future of a $20.6-billion oilsands project in northern Alberta, Teck Resources Ltd., the company behind the project, has withdrawn its application.



Earlier in the day, the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation ( ACFN) reached an agreement with the province on several environmental areas of concern. That agreement meant all 14 affected First Nations and Metis organizations in the area had granted their support for the project that would have been about 110 km north of Fort McMurray and would have covered roughly 10,000 hectares of the boreal forest.



But just hours after sharing the news of the agreement, ACFN Chief Allan Adam was shocked to hear of Teck's decision.



"It's a shame, because we worked so hard with the province and did everything we can to make sure the project was going to get the green light," he said Sunday night.



"To me, it's shocking news ... What went wrong?"



Sunday evening, Teck CEO Don Lindsay released a statement sent to federal Environment and Climate Change Minister Johnathan Wilkinson, stating the Vancouver-based company's desire to "withdraw our regulatory application for the Frontier oilsands project from the federal environmental assessment process."



"It is now evident that there is no constructive path forward for the project," he wrote.



"The promise of Canada's potential will not be realized until governments can reach agreement around how climate policy considerations will be addressed in the context of future responsible energy sector development.



"Without clarity on this critical question, the situation that has faced Frontier will be faced by future projects and it will be very difficult to attract future investment, either domestic or foreign."



The project would have created an estimated 7,000 construction jobs, 2,500 operating jobs and $12 billion in federal income and capital taxes.



"Teck's withdrawal falls squarely at the feet of the Trudeau government. They've undermined national unity, investor confidence and our economic interests all at the same time. This is not only regulatory dysfunction, it is national disgrace."



Tristan Goodman, president of the Explorers and Producers Association of Canada, believes the ongoing blockades tied to the Coastal GasLink project and protests against energy projects likely had a role in the Frontier project application being withdrawn, and he's concerned about the broader signal it sends to investors and all Canadians.



"It's dramatically disappointing and really unfortunate for the entire country," he said. "Unfortunately, we have this small, militant vocal minority that is really shutting down the future economic prosperity for everybody in this country, including the Indigenous community. This is really getting quite out of hand and at some point, we are going to lose a generation of economic prosperity from east to west to the north here if we can't get our house in order."

[Anonymous]

I know we have a thread for political cartoons, but this one is directly related to the thread.

https://postmediatorontosun.files.wordpress.com/2020/02/thumbnail_dolighan_cartoon_feb2420.jpg">

[Anonymous]

Very bad news for Canadian workers and government revenue.

[Anonymous]

Teck Resources decision proves Canada is inhospitable to energy development

It sends a message to foreign investors that sovereign risk in Canada's energy sector is comparable to a banana republic



Trudeau's latest catastrophic failure relates to Teck Resources' decision to cancel its $20.6-billion Frontier oilsands mine in northeast Alberta, a project that received regulatory approval and support from all 14 First Nations and Métis communities the mine would have impacted, who are bitterly disappointed by the news. The company wrote off $1.13 billion in sunk costs for the same reason Enbridge and TransCanada wrote off comparably staggering amounts and Kinder Morgan would have done, too, had it not been bailed out by the Canadian taxpayers. The inability of the government to reconcile resource development and climate change put Teck in an untenable position. Well over $120 billion of projects have been cancelled in the past three years of Liberal hostility and incompetence. The latest may signal the death knell for further projects.



The loss is staggering: 7,000 jobs during construction, 2,500 during operation and $70 billion in taxes to governments to fund health care, education and infrastructure. Rejection is another body blow to a resentful and beleaguered Alberta and a message to foreign investors that sovereign risk in Canada's energy sector is comparable to a banana republic.



Since the world's largest countries are not doing their share on emissions reduction, why are we morally obliged to wreck our economy, especially when our natural gas could reduce net global emissions by helping lessen Asia's use of higher-emitting coal? Historians will look back in bewilderment if Canada sacrificed so much for so little environmental return.



Then there are the ruinous implications of the blockades, which doubtless influenced the Teck decision. The prime minister looked like a deer in the headlights when protesters blocked train tracks, bridges and highways, seriously impeding trade and travel and creating a national crisis. When he finally came home to address the crisis, he could not clearly communicate what if anything he would do, beyond "dialogue." While Trudeau fiddled, the country burned.



Once the current crisis is resolved, Trudeau needs to focus on overarching priorities: growing the economy, building pipelines to tidewater so oil and gas can be sold to overseas markets, investing in science and technology and adapting to a changing climate. He must also forge a fair, constructive and practical relationship with Aboriginal peoples, one that recognizes their legitimate rights and responsibilities and provides them a better opportunity for self-reliance and prosperity. Consistent with those priorities, his government should immediately work to restart Energy East.



Unlike pious grandstanding, these actions would serve our national interests and the world's. But if the prime minister continues to abdicate leadership, he should step aside for someone who would exercise it. This can't go on.

https://business.financialpost.com/opinion/joe-oliver-teck-decision-proves-canada-is-inhospitable-to-energy-development">https://business.financialpost.com/opin ... evelopment">https://business.financialpost.com/opinion/joe-oliver-teck-decision-proves-canada-is-inhospitable-to-energy-development



It used to be that industry would secure funds for a large project and then seek regulatory approval. With one resource project after another not approved by the Trudeau regime or suffering death by delay, Teck put the cart before the horse. They sought approval first because in Trudeau's Canada, that is the biggest obstacle to investment.



Former Finance Minister Joe Oliver is correct, this cannot continue. Our resource sector is too valuable and provides too much wealth to be sacrificed in the name of climate change. Not that keeping our resource wealth in the ground will stop climate change anyway. All pain, and no gain.

[Anonymous]

Teck Frontier cancellation entirely Trudeau's fault

The fault is clearly with the Trudeau government's entirely spineless response to blockades across the country



Make no mistake, the end of Teck Resources' Frontier oilsands mine is Justin Trudeau's fault — plainly, clearly, unequivocally.



The project's cancellation also means the radical fringe is in charge of Canada, not the government, the courts or the police.



Teck's decision, announced Sunday, will also have far-reaching effects on the entire Canadian economy, not just the energy sector.



There is no doubt this is Justin Trudeau's fault.



Oh sure, the Liberals will try to spin this as an economic decision by the company. The feds will insist the price of oil is too low to make such a huge investment viable.



That's what the Liberals claimed in 2017 when the Energy East pipeline was cancelled.



[size=150]Energy East was stopped by its owners, TransCanada PipeLines (TC) because the Liberals had just moved the regulatory goalposts. [/size]Instead of being responsible just for the emissions that came from building and operating the line, the Trudeau government decided TC should also be responsible for the emissions created to extract the oil and those produced when the oil was used after leaving the line.



[size=150]Rather than accept the blame that was clearly theirs that time, the Liberals blamed the company and the price of oil — just as they will try to do this time.[/size]



But the fault is clearly with the Trudeau government's entirely spineless response to blockades across the country.



Last week, Teck said that despite a temporary fall in the price of oil, Frontier still made economic sense. What doesn't make sense, though, is investing $20 billion in the oilsands when it is clear the federal government will not back you up when protests arise, even if the courts say they should.



Would you invest a nickel in Canada right now when all anyone has to do to choke off the economy is throw a few wooden pallets across a rail line or highway and claim to be defending Indigenous rights or the environment?



[size=150]Teck chief executive Don Lindsay wrote in a letter to Trudeau on Sunday that the company was withdrawing its application for approval of the oilsands project that would have created 7,000 jobs because the countrywide blockades against the Coastal GasLink pipeline had

been allowed to get out of control. Lindsay was worried Teck would be next.[/size]



Without more clarity from Ottawa on resource development and climate policy, Lindsay said, it will be "very difficult to attract future investment, either domestic or foreign."



So just what is Canada's policy on resource development and climate?



Don't ask Justin Trudeau. He's not in charge. He gave up any claim he had to be our leader with his entirely pathetic response to the blockades.



It doesn't matter that he developed a little more toughness late last week. Or that, as a result, police in Ontario were making a modest attempt Monday morning to bring down the blockade of the CN mainline there.



By then, it was too late.



Trudeau showed he wasn't interested in being in charge when, last Tuesday, he said the answer to the lawless at the blockades was more touchy-feely consultation and listening.



[size=150]If you want to know Canada's energy and environmental policy, go ask the eco-radicals funded by U.S. billionaires because they're the ones making the decisions now.[/size]



(And while you're there, ask them when their actions are going to create 7,000 well-paying jobs to help families avoid financial ruin.)



Don't ask a federal Liberal MP or cabinet minister what Canada's First Nations policies are. Don't even ask the majority of Indigenous Canadians who want to improve their communities by participating in projects such as Teck Frontier and Coastal GasLink.





Go ask the unelected, unaccountable radicals at the blockades, because they're in charge now.

https://www.thewhig.com/news/national/gunter-teck-frontier-cancellation-entirely-trudeaus-fault/wcm/f966cb68-e574-4cf6-a55f-587ac4d52b7f">https://www.thewhig.com/news/national/g ... 7ac4d52b7f">https://www.thewhig.com/news/national/gunter-teck-frontier-cancellation-entirely-trudeaus-fault/wcm/f966cb68-e574-4cf6-a55f-587ac4d52b7f



By doing nothing about the illlegal blockades by a tiny minority, it further deteriorated an already poor investment climate in Canada. Why would any company want to invest in Trudeau's Canada.

[Anonymous]

Teck made it clear Justin Trudeau's failure to uphold the rule of law in the illegal blockade crisis meant that they could no longer move forward with Frontier.

[@realAzhyaAryola]

Teck made it clear Justin Trudeau's failure to uphold the rule of law in the illegal blockade crisis meant that they could no longer move forward with Frontier.

DAMN!

[Anonymous]

Teck made it clear Justin Trudeau's failure to uphold the rule of law in the illegal blockade crisis meant that they could no longer move forward with Frontier.

While that doesn't help, Teck, like all foreign investors got tired of the political climate of blocking resource investment approvals.



From CEO Don Lindsay,



The promise of Canada's potential will not be realized until governments can reach agreement around how climate policy considerations will be addressed in the context of future responsible energy sector development. Without clarity on this critical question, the situation that has faced Frontier will be faced by future projects and it will be very difficult to attract future investment, either domestic or foreign.

https://business.financialpost.com/opinion/nota-bene-there-is-no-constructive-path-forward-for-teck-frontier">https://business.financialpost.com/opin ... k-frontier">https://business.financialpost.com/opinion/nota-bene-there-is-no-constructive-path-forward-for-teck-frontier

[Anonymous]

Seoul, do you think the current pm will ever work to get resource projects in Western Canada approved?

[Anonymous]

Seoul, do you think the current pm will ever work to get resource projects in Western Canada approved?

No. As your premier said, "The Government of Alberta agreed to every request and condition raised by the federal government for approving the Frontier project, including protecting bison and caribou habitat, regulation of oilsands emissions, and securing full Indigenous support," the Premier said. "The Government of Alberta repeatedly asked what more we could do to smooth the approval process. We did our part, but the federal government's inability to convey a clear or unified position let us, and Teck, down."



If the mine was in Quebec, it would have been approved without delay. Trudeau doesn't need nor even want Alberta's votes. Alberta and Saskatchewan will have to consider secession, union with the US or hope the Tories win a majority in the next election if they want large scale industrial projects approved.

[Anonymous]

Justine's anti prairie province regime was never going to approve Teck Frontier. Add to that the NDP, Bloc and Greens are forcing him to be even harder on Alberta.



No more pipelines, and no more mines in the West. Canada's climate policy means always no prairie energy and never a no to the 800,000 barrels of foreign oil entering Canada each day. This country is insane.

[Anonymous]

Parts of an article by Rick Bell.



Delays cost money and Trudeau prefers that method of killing large industrial projects over a no.



DELAY OF GAME

Kenney says feds' latest pause pushed Teck over edge



According to the premier, the Trudeau government told Teck they'd wouldn't get a Yes or No on the project this week. The federal Liberals would kick the can down the road.



"I believe if it had not been for that uncertainty they would have proceeded with the project," says Kenney.



You do have to wonder. Why would a company who jumped through hoops for nine years pull out on the eve of getting a possible approval?



Unless there wasn't a possible approval, at least not now.



The smart money never bet on a Yes after all the signals from the less-than-enthusiastic Trudeau team who've had since last July to give a green light to the job-creating oilsands mine.



Kenney also says he was told by Teck "the general atmosphere of lawlessness" in the past three weeks sure didn't help.



That issue didn't make it into Teck's Dear Justin letter and the premier cannot explain why.



The premier also has been on the phone with big money the last several days and they've cancelled or put on hold spending plans because of "the appearance of anarchy in parts of this country."

[@realAzhyaAryola]

Teck made it clear Justin Trudeau's failure to uphold the rule of law in the illegal blockade crisis meant that they could no longer move forward with Frontier.

While that doesn't help, Teck, like all foreign investors got tired of the political climate of blocking resource invest approvals.

A bolder investor needs to step in. Who?

[@realAzhyaAryola]

Justine's anti prairie province regime was never going to approve Teck Frontier. Add to that the NDP, Bloc and Greens are forcing him to be even harder on Alberta.



No more pipelines, and no more mines in the West. Canada's climate policy means always no prairie energy and never a no to the 800,000 barrels of foreign oil entering Canada each day. This country is insane.

It's like this to me. Take for instance a fruit or vegetable. It seems to me the PM is content with the healthy parts of the fruit while one end is growing mold.

[Anonymous]

Teck made it clear Justin Trudeau's failure to uphold the rule of law in the illegal blockade crisis meant that they could no longer move forward with Frontier.

While that doesn't help, Teck, like all foreign investors got tired of the political climate of blocking resource invest approvals.

A bolder investor needs to step in. Who?

No investor will touch Canada's resource sector and I don't blame them. They spend a billion dollars, meeting all enviro and Aboriginal requirements, wait ten years and still don't get an approval.



Does Canada want to turn into another Argentina or Venezuela. Do we want investment and middle class jobs or are we content to see investment flow to Trump's US or Morrison's Australia. We don't have  lot of time left to decide.