Premier Smith says Alberta preparing Sovereignty Act motion over federal emissions plans

Hours after the operators of the province's power grid warned that new federal electricity regulations could lead to blackouts, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said her government is preparing for the possibility of enacting her signature legislation in an effort to push back against Ottawa's planned emissions reductions.

"We're preparing a Sovereignty Act motion, and I'm hoping we don't have to use it. That's why we're at the table having these negotiations," Smith said, referring to a recently formed Alberta-Ottawa working group focused on emissions reductions. 

"But we are going to defend our constitutional jurisdiction to make sure that we develop our oil and gas industry at our own pace, and that we develop our electricity system so that it achieves the goal of reliability and affordability."

When asked at what point she would potentially invoke the act, Smith said she has continually said she would do so if Ottawa "comes through with emissions caps that are unconstitutional."

WATCH | Alberta premier discusses use of Sovereignty Act:

Mentioning Ottawa's 2030 targets requiring the oil and gas sector to cut emissions by 42 per cent below 2019 levels, along with plans to make the electricity grid net-zero by 2035, Smith said such plans were "not on."

"That's why we're continuing with the negotiation. If we can get aligned on 2050, then we won't have to build a fence to protect our constitutional jurisdiction. So, ball's in their court," Smith said.

Smith's Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act, which was passed late last year, has a stated purpose to direct provincial agencies to ignore federal laws deemed unconstitutional, though there has long been contention around how it would work in practice.

Earlier this month on CBC's West of Centre podcast, Smith said she recognized that interim targets needed to be in place when it comes to emissions reductions.

Smith had convened a press conference on Thursday just two hours after Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO), the organization responsible for operating the province's power grid, said Ottawa's proposed clean electricity regulations (CER) pose a disproportionate risk and cost to Alberta compared to other provinces.

Alberta is reliant on natural gas generation both for baseload and to meet peak demand, AESO president and CEO Mike Law told reporters on Thursday. Natural gas enables reliability and balances the intermittency of other assets, Law said.

WATCH | AESO president and CEO reacts to new federal emissions regulations:

He added that AESO's analysis indicates that the way the CER is currently written is going to create supply adequacy and reliability challenges for Alberta's power system from 2035 and beyond.

"Regardless of how much intermittent wind and solar Alberta has, the provincial grid will need sufficient dispatchable generation to meet the cold, dark, windless winter nights that we have in this province and form our peak load conditions," he said.