Federal energy minister suggests Alberta-Ottawa MOU requirements can still be met, even if deadline is missed

Less than two months remain before a deadline that's significant for several agreements within the memorandum of understanding Ottawa and Alberta signed last fall.

Canada's energy minister, Tim Hodgson, said on Friday he hopes even if both governments miss the April 1 deadline, an agreement can still be made.

“You work your damnedest to get to the deadlines, and you see what it looks like when you get really close. And I’m not predicting anything, [but] if something slips, look how the other side behaves,” said Hodgson at an event in Calgary hosted by the Financial Post and Calgary Economic Development.

“If the other side says, ‘You know what, we’re working in good faith, we’re committed to this,’ we’re going to get this done. And I think that’s the spirit we’re in right now.”

Hodgson added that the federal and provincial governments still have every intention of hitting the deadline and are still willing partners to do so.

The MOU was a major agreement signed in November that gives Alberta special exemptions from federal environmental laws, while stating a new pipeline can only be built with the development of a major carbon capture project.

The spring deadline calls for the federal and Alberta governments to come to an agreement on carbon pricing, methane emissions, a carbon capture project and a process for impact assessments of new energy projects.

“Everyone understands that Canadians want to see action. Everyone understands Canadians don’t want to see excuses,” said Hodgson.

Nathan Neudorf is also confident both sides won’t let progress on a deal be derailed if the April 1 deadline isn’t met.

Alberta's minister of affordability and utilities attended Hodgson's talk on Friday, and said both sides still need to show they've made progress toward an agreement by April 1.

He said there are still significant differences for the two sides to negotiate.

“There’s more work to do, and there are some viewpoints that are incredibly far apart that we’re working toward. We’re trying to weld an agreement that is practical, as the minister said, real and affordable,” said Neudorf.

“We have the same end goal. It’s the how, and how much is it going to cost.” 

Brad Parry, Calgary Economic Development president, said his takeaway from Hodgson’s talk on Friday was that a pragmatic approach is needed to find common ground on the MOU.