Industrial carbon tax: Pierre Poilievre’s silence is worrying

It feels like an environmental fair, but it’s actually the Calgary International Energy Show.

cars per year, or 114tons of CO₂.”,”text”:”This little machine here, proudly announces Jordan Hicks, helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of 24 cars per year, or 114 tons of CO2.”}}”>This little machine here, proudly announces Jordan Hicks, helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of 24 cars per year, or 114 tons of CO₂.

The idea is to help these companies reduce their carbon footprint, so that they achieve their environmental target.

Without the existence of an industrial carbon price, its customers’ appetite for its products would be much less. It’s an incentive that I like, admits Jordan Hicks, it encourages businesses to make changes that help the environment.

Alberta was the first province to implement industrial carbon pricing. Almost all others have a carbon price that targets large companies. The federal program acts as a safety net and imposes minimum standards that ensure harmonization across the country.

Many oil and gas companies are advocating for the program to remain in place because it helps fund their emissions reductions, spurs technological innovation, creates jobs and provides stability to the country’s investment climate.

These companies are therefore asking for details from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who promises to abolish the carbon tax on consumers, but refuses to say whether he will eliminate the industrial carbon tax.

Useless lobbyist who says stupid things

The Conservative leader made the slogan Axe the Tax (Abolish the tax, in French) his political mantra. But he is careful not to say whether he is for or against a carbon price for large companies.

On April 9, a New Democratic MP, Laurel Collins, asked him in the House: Would he abolish the carbon tax imposed on the industrial sector? Pierre Poilievre denied the existence of such a tax.

Mr President, there is no carbon tax on the oil and gas sectorreplied the Conservative leader. In Alberta, the province has a self-administered technology innovation and emissions reduction system.

The MP, adds Pierre Poilievre, should therefore do her research before asking questions of this kind.

On June 11, regarding the concerns of oil sands companies about the future of the industrial carbon tax, Pierre Poilievre responded tit for tat.

Mr. Speaker, it seems to me that this is another useless lobbyist who is talking nonsense. I do not listen to lobbyists from large organizations like that.

A rejection out of hand which comes to the great dismay of many Alberta business people. Not just large companies, but also SMEs.

An essential tool for reducing GHGs

Industrial carbon pricing is the most effective tool to combat climate change, according to the Climate Institute of Canada. It alone will account for about a third of all emissions reductions in the country by 2030.

Prix carbone very attractive for investors

After the slogan Drill, Baby, Drill! (Fore, baby, fore!), here comes the slogan Reduce, Baby, Reduce! (Reduced, baby, reduced!). At the Calgary International Energy Show, carbon neutrality now takes pride of place. The emissions reduction market is booming. Business leaders are sniffing out a good deal and promoting their environmental prowess.

million tons of CO₂ thanks to our invention”,”text”:”We managed to eliminate the equivalent of 5 million tonnes of CO2 thanks to our invention”}}”>We have managed to eliminate the equivalent of 5 million tonnes of CO₂ thanks to our inventionsays Tyler Teece, business development manager at Sirius Instrumentation and Controls.

The Alberta company, which has around a hundred employees, is banking on the growing emissions reduction market to boost its turnover.

The company’s Canadian order book would be much smaller without the industrial carbon tax, Teece says. And not knowing whether Poilievre wants to keep it or eliminate it is causing him headaches.

The worst thing, he says, is the uncertainty, because we don’t know what to do to adjust our business model.

A chill on investments

This uncertainty is echoed all the way to the tops of Calgary’s office buildings, where the CEOs of oil companies and other multinationals investing in Canada live.

Dow Chemical Canada has invested $9 billion in Alberta in a carbon-neutral plant that produces chemicals found particularly in packaging plastics.

Our consumers and investors around the world demand carbon-neutral products, explains CEO Diego Ordoñez, but it must be profitable to produce them.

The construction of the plant will provide employment for 6,000 workers, Ordoñez said. Once operational, the plant will employ 450 people.

The federal industrial carbon price and Alberta’s pricing system were key factors in our decision to locate here.

Uncertainty around federal carbon pricing for businesses could have a serious impact on our investmentshe continues. Especially since, without a Canadian carbon tax, Europe could impose carbon tariffs on us at the border as a condition of access to its market.

When there is uncertainty, it adds delays and additional costsmentions Diego Ordoñez, factors that can harm long-term investments.

A message that the major Canadian oil companies took to Ottawa on June 6. The CEOs of Cenovus, Imperial and Suncor explained to the parliamentary committee that the carbon tax helps reduce emissionsthat she stimulates innovation and ensures market stability for investments.

Cry of the heart

In front of an attentive crowd at the Energy Show, Soheil Khiavi extols the merits of the industrial carbon tax as a catalyst for investment and innovation in the country.

Without carbon pricing, This would force many jobs to move outside the country, especially high-tech jobs.believes the CEO of Hydron Energy.

He asks the Conservative leader to reveal his intentions as quickly as possible.

Many projects are on ice due to this uncertainty. Thousands of jobs could be at stake.

Pierre Poilievre, according to him, should reconsider his position. Khiavi, but not to the detriment of the economy or the planet.”,”text”:”It’s one thing to win votes, according to Mr. Khiavi, but not to the detriment of the economy or the planet. “}}”>It is one thing to win votes, Mr. Khiavi said, but not at the expense of the economy or the planet.

Pierre Poilievre’s office did not respond to our requests regarding the Conservative leader’s intentions regarding carbon pricing for large businesses, despite several emails sent over the past three weeks.

With the collaboration of Marie Chabot-Johnson and Andréanne Apablaza