Prime Minister Mark Carney and\u00a0Alberta\u00a0Premier Danielle Smith are to meet today in Calgary, where they\u2019re expected to announce an agreement on the future of industrial carbon emission pricing in the province.<\/p>\n
A source familiar with the discussions has said the leaders are expected to announce a plan to raise Alberta\u2019s emissions price to $130 per tonne by 2040.<\/p>\n
Last year,\u00a0Alberta\u00a0froze its industrial carbon emission price at $95 per tonne.<\/p>\n
The two governments pledged in a November memorandum of understanding to take several steps, including a carbon price plan, to build a bitumen pipeline to the West Coast.<\/p>\n
A price for carbon<\/p>\n
Carney has said today\u2019s agreement would advance that new pipeline.<\/p>\n
Smith has called the announcement another step toward resetting the province\u2019s relationship with Ottawa.<\/p>\n
A price of $130 per tonne for\u00a0Alberta\u00a0would force Ottawa to be more lenient with other provinces that follow the federal price. A judge ruled in 2021 that all jurisdictions need equal treatment for carbon pricing.<\/p>\n
The source said while the effective carbon price is expected to reach $130 per tonne by 2040, the headline price in\u00a0Alberta\u00a0would reach $100 per tonne by 2027 before rising to $130 per tonne by 2035.<\/p>\n
The difference between the effective carbon price and the headline price is the way in which companies accumulate credits to comply with their emission limits.<\/p>\n
The effective carbon price \u2014 the market price \u2014 is the price at which credits are bought and sold on the open market.<\/p>\n
The headline price is what companies pay the\u00a0Alberta\u00a0government to reach compliance. The money goes into a general fund to invest in emissions reduction technology.<\/p>\n
Industry questions Canada\u2019s carbon price <\/p>\n
Oil and gas industry leaders have said in recent weeks that Ottawa\u2019s carbon policy is putting Canada at a competitive disadvantage, especially compared with other oil-exporting nations without a carbon tax.<\/p>\n
Others, including Nancy Southern, chief executive officer of ATCO, have said Canada\u2019s industry can afford a higher price.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe that all of us in industry will find ways to make ourselves just as competitive as we have been in the past with a new carbon price,\u201d Southern said this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor our company, it\u2019s something we can prepare for, and it\u2019s not something we disagree with \u2014 having strong carbon pricing. It allows a whole different set of opportunities in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n
Former federal environment minister Catherine McKenna told The Canadian Press ahead of the Calgary announcement that the expected industrial carbon pricing schedule for\u00a0Alberta\u00a0doesn\u2019t make sense from an environmental or economic perspective.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is really unfortunate is it isn\u2019t that we\u2019re just weakening the industrial carbon price. It seems that our entire climate plan is being dismantled because of demands by Alberta\u2019s reckless Premier Danielle Smith,\u201d McKenna said.<\/p>\n
She also pointed the finger at \u201crich oil and gas companies.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt shouldn\u2019t be basically free for oil and gas companies to pollute. They\u2019re the only sector in our economy that have not reduced their emissions,\u201d said McKenna.<\/p>\n
Smith and Carney have said their deal is necessary to convince Alberta\u2019s separatist movement not to give up on Canada.<\/p>\n
Earlier this week, a judge threw out a petition seeking to put a separation question on the ballot, saying it should never have been issued and that Smith\u2019s government neglected its duty to consult First Nations.<\/p>\n
Smith has said the province will appeal the ruling.<\/p>\n
\u2014 By Jack Farrell in Edmonton, with files from Lauren Krugel in Calgary and Nick Murray in Ottawa<\/p>\n
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 15, 2026.<\/p>\n
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