The price of West Texas Intermediate dropped to US$45 per barrel on Feb. 28, the day Premier Scott Moe was in Estevan to announce coal transition funding for Estevan and Coronach. What impact would the sliding oil price have on the provincial budget?
鈥淲ith respect to the provincial budget, we achieved our three-year plan of balance this year,鈥� Moe said during a press scrum. 鈥淲e will continue through, to the end of the year, with a balance on the current year. And we will balance the budget that鈥檚 coming out, that will be announced on March 18.鈥�
He said the budget will have record investment in infrastructure across the province, both provincial and municipal, and in families.
鈥淭he broader challenge that we have, and had, and ran into three years ago, with respect to the economic headwinds we鈥檝e had here, partially to resource prices which have partially recovered.
鈥淲e have a vibrant (energy sector), not only electrical energy industry here in Estevan, we have a vibrant oilfield industry in Estevan, Weyburn and the surrounding areas. Those industries in particular, the potash industry as well, have faced some headwinds in the way of natural resource prices.鈥�
Moe said regulatory challenges like Bill C-69 and Bill C-48 have made impacts. But he said there鈥檚 one area the government feels it can make a difference, by recently forming its cabinet Pipeline Projects Assessment Committee to 鈥渞eally blow the lid of the box off, if you will, on the opportunities and considerations we have to encourage and enhance pipeline infrastructure to get our product out of this province.
鈥淲e have, today, about 10 per cent of our energy production is leaving by rail. The fact of the matter is it鈥檚 more expensive. It鈥檚 unsafe. We鈥檝e had two derailments in over the course of the last few months. Derailments of oil 鈥� a product that shouldn鈥檛 be on the rails. It should be in a pipeline. We should have that rail capacity for grain and potash and those other items we also are increasing our exports of,鈥� he said.
鈥淭he fact of the matter is these regulator actions are already challenging the industries we have here. So we are taking action where we think we can make a difference. The PPAC committee is one of them.鈥�
As for the carbon tax, he noted the recent ruling by the Alberta Court of Appeal which said the tax was unconstitutional. This is in contrast to similar cases in Saskatchewan and Ontario which found the federal government could enact a carbon tax.
Moe said, 鈥淲e鈥檝e had a couple of split decisions. We鈥檝e had a successful decision, now. I would say the fact is if that carbon tax the federal government wants to impose on the hardworking people of this province, or any other province, is actually constitutional, it should stand every constitutional challenge each and every time, and it鈥檚 not doing that. So the federal government should remove it, and remove it until they get clarification from the Supreme Court.鈥�
He suggested the federal government should engage with the provinces on 鈥渢rue climate change plans鈥� and innovation that will make a difference, such as the Boundary Dam carbon capture and storage project.
