Natural Resources

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources met to study Canadian energy exports, hearing from Alison Nankivell of Export Development Canada (EDC), Chris Cooper of LNG Canada, Fred Ghatala of Advanced Biofuels Canada, Imran Noorani of the Canadian Renewable Energy Association, and Stéphane Renou of FPInnovations.

Alison Nankivell described EDC’s role in supporting Canadian energy exports through financing, insurance, and working capital on commercial terms, noting that in 2025 EDC facilitated $18 billion in energy and energy transition activity, including $2 billion in oil and gas financing (a 73% increase over 2024) and $1.4 billion in renewables financing. She highlighted strong international interest in Canadian natural gas, particularly from Germany, Japan, and Korea, and emphasized EDC’s focus on supporting the full energy value chain, including mid-market companies, to prevent Canadian firms from being acquired by U.S. competitors. She also noted EDC’s trade impact program for sectors like softwood lumber, which provides tariff bond guarantees, though Mr. Simard questioned whether EDC’s support is disproportionately weighted toward oil and gas versus other sectors like forestry.

Chris Cooper outlined LNG Canada’s phase one as a model for responsible development, emphasizing the need for policy certainty, regulatory predictability, and competitive fiscal frameworks to attract investment for a potential phase two expansion. He stated that Canada’s stringent regulations produce low-carbon LNG but slow projects down, and argued for streamlining processes rather than lowering standards, noting that phase two is under consideration by joint venture participants and that the Major Projects Office has been helpful as a coordinator. He disagreed with the premise that Canada is over-regulated in a way that kills competitiveness, instead framing the challenge as aligning policy and stakeholder interests to make investments work, and he confirmed that phase two would build on existing indigenous partnerships with expanded equity opportunities.

Fred Ghatala stressed that biofuels are essential for energy security, affordability, and reducing emissions, noting that the sector contributes $17.8 billion annually and supports over 66,000 jobs, with biofuels making up over 7% of diesel and 10% of gasoline in Canada. He argued that federal clean fuel regulations and industrial carbon pricing are critical for creating a durable domestic market and enabling exports, and he called for cross-party alignment to provide long-term policy certainty, which he said is the leading cause of turbulence in the sector. He also highlighted the opportunity for sustainable aviation fuel, noting that British Columbia’s regulatory approach could serve as a model for federal policy.

Imran Noorani described Canada’s clean electricity sector as entering an investment supercycle, with up to 90 gigawatts of additional wind, solar, and storage needed by the mid-2030s, representing a $200-billion to $300-billion opportunity. He argued that clean electricity is both an exportable asset and the enabling infrastructure for other energy exports, and he emphasized that federal investment tax credits paired with long-term provincial power purchase agreements create an unmatched investment framework globally. He stressed the importance of maintaining policy clarity and investment certainty to build domestic manufacturing capability, and he noted that storage technology is key to addressing intermittency and supporting grid reliability.

Stéphane Renou explained that the forestry sector can generate the equivalent of 5% to 10% of Canada’s current electricity production from wood residues, and that energy production is the most viable path to stabilize forestry communities and prevent the closure of sawmills and pulp mills. He cautioned that Canadian fibre costs put the country at a disadvantage for producing biofuels like sustainable aviation fuel compared to Brazil, and he argued that carbon pricing or other regulations are necessary to make such investments viable, but that policies must be designed with a long-term vision to avoid inflation. He disagreed with the idea that a one-size-fits-all policy would work, calling for case-by-case approaches and federal-provincial harmonization on transport and fibre access.

The committee debated a motion from Mr. Simard to invite the co-chairs of the Canadian Forest Sector Transformation Task Force to appear for one hour, which was agreed to. There was also a brief procedural exchange about the minister’s scheduled appearance for the nuclear study, with Mr. Tochor expressing concern that the minister would not be present for a full hour.