Provincial Energy Strategy: Frequently asked questions

We are committed to taking bold action to seize the opportunities and address the challenges Alberta faces in a way that will reap immediate and far-reaching benefits. There is more than one answer to how we will achieve these objectives:

1. Address the environmental footprint of energy through gasification-CCS technology, smart land use decisions and encouraging complementary alternative energy sources.
2. Pursue the ways in which we can add value to Alberta’s energy industry by optimizing extraction of basin resources, developing a world-class hydrocarbon processing cluster and aggressively marketing Alberta’s energy globally.
3. Change energy consumption behavior through energy efficiency and conservation measures such as smart metering, green transportation, green building codes, and through emissions targets and market signals.
4. Provide leadership in innovation and energy technology through direct involvement in pilot plants and demonstration projects, nurturing an innovation culture through the Bringing Technology to Market action plan, and by investing in the next generation of energy professionals.
5. Enhance the capability of our electricity system by planning for a comprehensive upgrade to strengthen the transmission system by identifying requirements, technical solutions, timing, and updating of the approval process.
6. Bolster knowledge and awareness of and appropriate education on energy issues.
7. Align other initiatives, programs, policies, and regulations with this strategy.

Hydrocarbons, or fossil fuels, will continue to be at the core of the province’s energy portfolio for many years into the future. It is simply not possible to eliminate the need for hydrocarbons and the energy strategy recognizes that we will continue to develop oil and gas as the cornerstone of our economy.

Clean energy production requires us to break the link between consumption of the hydrocarbons and the resulting byproducts, namely greenhouse gases. New technologies are being developed to better manage hydrocarbon emissions, such as gasification and carbon capture. Alberta’s area of greatest natural advantage is in the sustainable development of fossil fuels. That’s where we have focused our strategy.

Renewable energy is also here to stay and it will become an increasingly important part of our energy mix. Alberta has a wealth of renewable biomass feedstock that will drive considerable production of low-carbon transportation fuels and power generation. We have long benefited from power generated by hydroelectric dams. Wind, wave, tidal, solar, geothermal, biomass, biogas and run-of-river hydro will increase their presence in Alberta.

Wise energy use directly addresses the challenge of climate change and is also one key way to sustain both our energy-based economy and Alberta’s energy reserves. The starting point will be to bolster knowledge by creating awareness about energy consumption and providing educational opportunities on energy issues.

Energy conservation is something that must occur on every level – in Albertan households, business and industry. Wise energy use is a key objective of the strategy which aims to reduce overall demand for energy and increase efficiency in how we use our energy resources.

The Government will seek to increase wise energy use in all sectors within Alberta through strategic support for increased efficiency and conservation, such as green transit and green building codes, paired with the Specified Gas Emitters Regulation for large industrial facilities (which puts in place a price on carbon for large emitters).

The Provincial Energy Strategy identifies a number of steps towards deriving greater wealth over the longer term from Alberta’s resources.

1. Alberta will tap more of what we currently leave in the ground, develop our substantial unconventional gas (coalbed methane, shale gas, tight sands), and reach more of our oil sands resource potential.
2. Alberta will invest in energy infrastructure that is critical to sustained economic prosperity, including policy development and energy research.
3. Opportunities for further value-added development in Alberta will be pursued for our oil, gas and petrochemicals industries as we support upgrading/refining/petrochemical clusters.
4. We will aggressively market Alberta’s energy globally and bolster knowledge and awareness of energy issues.

The Government of Alberta will lead the development of policy analysis and options for value added development, support the development infrastructure and other requirements, and assess the optimum targets for bitumen allocation. That includes determining the appropriate balance between bitumen exports, upgraded product, and higher value produces like refined transportation fuels and petrochemicals.

We are already acting to support a vigorous energy sector through initiatives such as gasification technology and carbon capture and storage, a historic new royalty regime which includes bitumen in lieu of cash royalties, and support for Alberta’s petro-chemical industry.

Alberta will continue to focus on making sure we have a secure supply for residents and industry, offering competitive exports for our economic benefit, and taking care of our environment. We have excelled in these areas but the dimensions of the challenges are taking on greater complexity. Here are a few of the dimensions we will need to pay particular attention to:

1. Climate change. We are entering a future where emissions of carbon into the atmosphere will be constrained. Because the world will continue to need fossil fuels, we will need to find cleaner ways to produce and consume them.
2. Global markets. Alberta has opportunities to reduce its singular dependence on the U.S. market – and improve its bargaining power – by cultivating additional markets.
3. Technology. We must move the results of research through technology development and commercialization to fullscale commercial deployment in order to see our energy research investments pay economic and social dividends.
4. Adding value. Carefully planned upgrading and refining capacity provides options for realistically adding value to fossil fuels while contributing to cleaner energy.
5. Labour. Alberta’s future will be shaped around energy. We need to bring more people into the industry at all levels in order to fully tap the opportunities in years to come.
6. Energy use. The majority of global emissions result from the consumption, rather than the development of energy. Managing the demand side of energy use may cut consumption by as much as one-third.
7. Awareness and understanding. We need to communicate with the customers of Alberta’s energy on the steps we are taking to produce energy better.

The Provincial Energy Strategy sets future policy direction and outlines specific objectives, actions and opportunities that will come forward over the next several years. The strategy contains policies and recommendations that will be implemented by the Department of Energy and other departments. The Government will develop an implementation plan that will incorporate three horizons: short-term, medium-term and long-term. Benchmarks and outcomes will be identified over each horizon.

Ongoing monitoring will assess progress towards meeting the policy objectives of the strategy and allow us to reassess our objectives and strategies on an ongoing basis as conditions evolve. An annual report card to communicate progress to Albertans will also be prepared and will showcase collaboration across government on energy-related matters and it will be incorporated into annual business plan reporting.