The viability of OPEC as an effective organization is now in question
Gloom continues to cloud crude oil markets. With a COVID-19 vaccine unlikely to ride to the rescue of the global oil market for some time, the combination of weaker demand and rising oil supply provides a difficult backdrop to the meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and their allies later this month,…
The $493 billion in oil and gas revenues paid to governments since 2000 is more than family allowance and children’s benefits since 1970
By Mark Milke and Lennie Kaplan Canadian Energy Centre Humans are wired to respond to stories that paint a relatable picture of an issue at hand. And those stories are easier to remember. If we repeat a Rex Murphy story about how out-of-work cod fishery workers from Newfoundland saved their homes and marriages by moving…
Analysis shows Alberta must significantly reduce spending relative to the size of the economy or raise taxes
By Tegan Hill and Ben Eisen The Fraser Institute The Alberta government will release a three-year fiscal update later this month, and will be tempted to blame the province’s fiscal challenges on COVID-19. In reality, Alberta’s finances were unsustainable long before the pandemic hit. While the COVID-19-induced recession has certainly contributed to the province’s eye-popping…
Canada can supply oil and natural gas to world markets for decades, while driving down emissions and bolstering our economic recovery
Imagine a global $800-billion natural gas and oil investment market and the opportunity that represents for Canada. Canadians should be very interested in what it would mean for our country’s economic recovery if we market the strengths of our vast natural gas and oil industry, and capture an increasing share of those billions of investment…
Crude oil demand is under the cloud. Not long ago, global demand was expected to peak around 110 million barrels per day (bpd). And in 2007, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) forecast world demand for crude oil would reach even higher – 118 million bpd by 2030. But that was a different world.…
Every government-employee paycheque ultimately comes from taxpayers. That seems like an obvious point. But union bosses seem to need a reminder. Surrounded by striking government employees in Alberta Union of Provincial Employees garb, union boss Guy Smith claimed that “only in Alberta do they not give you the resources you need to do the work…
Less supportive policies and regulatory constraints has led to natural gas stagnation in Canada
By Mark Milke and Lennie Kaplan Canadian Energy Centre The United States has undergone an energy renaissance of sorts in recent years. After decades of importing significant volumes of natural gas, there has been a transformation in both the economy and policy on that source of energy in particular. Americans began to produce and export…
New U of A research outlines factors that lead cougars to select habitats near roadways in Alberta
A study by University of Alberta biologists identifies three key factors for how cougars select habitats near roadways: traffic, topography and daylight. “Cougars will avoid roads if there is human activity or while there is daylight,” explained Mark Boyce, professor in the Department of Biological Sciences and Alberta Conservation Association chair in Fisheries and Wildlife. “However, cougars will select habitat near…
Alberta’s consumers, businesses and governments were responsible for $31.4 billion of Ontario’s total interprovincial trade in 2016 alone
By Mark Milke and Ven Venkatachalam Canadian Energy Centre “All politics is local,” as 1980s-era U.S. House of Representatives leader Tip O’Neill put it. O’Neill’s point was straightforward: Voters care about what affects them. That, naturally, is where politicians then aim their promises and rhetoric. What’s true in politics is also true of the economy:…
U of A computing scientists working with Edmonton company to find out if applying AI to water treatment is a financial, environmental win-win
A pilot project leveraging the University of Alberta’s artificial intelligence expertise to improve the process of making drinking water safe is up and running in Drayton Valley, Alta. The U of A’s Reinforcement Learning and Artificial Intelligence Lab, along with the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute, an Alberta not-for-profit institute with U of A affiliations, Edmonton infrastructure technology…