Why Carney’s pipeline gamble is a bad bet for Canadian taxpayers
EXPERT COMMENT
Tensions with the US and Alberta are leading Prime Minister Carney to back new oil and gas infrastructure. Smoothing the path to electrification would be a better use of public funds.
Since taking office in January 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney has steered Canada’s energy policy away from reducing emissions towards increasing fossil fuel exports.
Some would argue that he had little choice. The Canadian economy is under pressure amidst the trade war launched by the administration of President Donald Trump. Carney took office with a mandate to de-risk Canada from the increasingly hostile United States, which buys over 90 per cent of Canada’s crude oil exports, and practically all its natural gas exports.
Additionally, the prime minister had to address a significant domestic issue: relations between Ottawa and Alberta, the province responsible for three-quarters of Canadian oil and gas production, had become increasingly toxic.
But Carney’s pivot may backfire, for one simple reason. The new markets Canada is relying upon for export growth will not buy imported oil and gas forever. And they may reduce their consumption sooner than anticipated.
Pouring taxpayer money into export infrastructure, largely to the benefit of foreign companies, doesn’t de-risk Canada’s economy. It risks swapping dependence on the US for other uncertain foreign markets.
Click here to continue reading the full version of this Expert Comment on the Chatham House website.