There is no feasible scenario where a new oil pipeline from Alberta to the west coast could be filled with "decarbonized barrels" of oilsands bitumen, a new report from the Pembina Institute finds.
This is the case even if a theoretical pipeline were twinned with the Pathways Alliance carbon capture and storage project, via the "Pathways Plus" concept the federal government has signalled it is considering for the next tranche of major projects, to be announced next month.
Instead, the report finds significant emissions reductions could be achieved in the oilsands, not via a "grand bargain" of a fast-tracked pipeline, but through strengthened industrial carbon pricing systems. This, along with the comprehensive federal and provincial subsidies already on offer for carbon capture projects, would create the necessary investment certainty to move the Pathways project (which was first proposed by oilsands companies more than four years ago) to final investment decision.
The Pathways project itself, the report highlights, would involve billions of dollars of private capital pouring into Alberta. It should alone be seen as a major project that would create economic growth, help futureproof the oilsands sector, and contribute to Canada's climate objectives - but only if it is not twinned with a new pipeline.
