On March 27, 2008, Premier Ed Stelmach presented his  mandate letters to the province’s 23 Cabinet Ministers.  In his letter to Energy Minister Mel Knight, the Premier identified the key priorities and issues he expects to be accomplished. The mandate letter also refers to the government’s five priorities and the Premier has asked Minister Knight to take the lead on the first priority, “Ensure Alberta’s energy resources are developed in an environmentally sustainable way.”   In his letter, the Premier also asked the Energy Minister to lead the following initiatives:

• Develop a comprehensive energy strategy
• Implement carbon capture and storage research and demonstration projects
• Support research and technology on new oil sands extraction processes that use less energy, less water, reduce tailings ponds and improve land reclamation.