A new pipeline would have to come with a carbon capture project. Will that bring jobs?

Before a bitumen pipeline from Alberta to British Columbia’s northwest coast can be built, there's another box that needs to be checked: a massive investment in carbon capture and storage in central Alberta.

That precondition for a pipeline — laid out in the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Alberta and Ottawa — refers to Pathways Plus, a major project proposed by the Pathways Alliance, a consortium of Canadian oilsands companies. It would see a large carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) project established near Cold Lake, Alta.

Now, a new initiative in Calgary from non-profit Carbon Management Canada is aiming to train more than 1,000 skilled workers to work at Pathways Alliance and other carbon capture projects in Alberta. 

Students will receive training through various programs at the University of Calgary, Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) and geoLOGIC Systems Ltd. as part of the TACTILE initiative (Talent Acceleration and Career Training in Low-carbon Energy).

Given the recent MOU, the announcement of the program is even more timely, says Neil Wildgust, president and CEO of Carbon Management Canada, which is using $11 million in funding from the federal government over the next three years to launch the program.

“I think that [carbon capture and storage] is a very important technology … It's an essential part of the mix if we're going to achieve net-zero in the future,” Wildgust said. “And so having a skilled workforce is an essential part of that.”

Anders Nygren, dean of the Schulich School of Engineering at the University of Calgary, said he’s excited for the university to take part in training a future workforce. Given the announcement around the Pathways Plus project, he added, there will be demand for engineers with more specialized knowledge in carbon capture.

The school will offer a four-course graduate certificate program delivered over 16 months, while the faculty of science will offer a graduate-level micro-credential course.

“This program is designed to add to engineers that already have a solid background in chemical engineering or mechanical engineering,” Nygren said. “This is a way to take experienced engineers that have worked maybe in the energy sector, for example, that want to contribute to carbon capture and storage.”

The University of Calgary’s first cohort will start the program in January. 

Wildgust said the various course offerings are looking for different kinds of workers. While the University of Calgary will be looking at graduates and post-graduates, geoLOGIC’s training will focus on adding training for existing professionals. SAIT, he said, will be targeted more at young people looking for technician-level roles.

While the TACTILE program has a positive outlook on a future carbon capture job market, lawyer Jeremy Barretto, who works in major projects with the law firm Cassels, said even with the MOU, the industry's future still isn't entirely clear. 

“The primary challenge is cost. It's very costly to build the long pipelines and other infrastructure required to transport and store large amounts of carbon for a long time,” he said.

If it comes to fruition, Pathways Plus will be one of the largest carbon capture, utilization and storage projects in the world, the federal government says. Pathways Alliance first proposed the project in 2022.