“The governments of Alberta and Canada met Sept. 12 to kick off the Alberta-Ottawa working group to align the efforts of the Alberta and Canadian governments on emissions reduction and energy development.
“The working group agreed to initially focus discussions on the recently released federal electricity regulations as its first priority. In addition, it agreed to commence the development of a regulatory framework for small modular reactor (nuclear) technology and to continue work on federal and provincial financial incentives for CCUS, hydrogen and other emission-reducing technologies.
“The Government of Alberta made clear to the federal delegation that it is entirely committed to securing safe, affordable and reliable electricity for Alberta families and businesses on a path to a carbon-neutral economy and power grid by 2050 but remains opposed to the federal 2035 net-zero power grid timeline.
“The Alberta delegation also expressed its position that introduction by the federal government of the final federal electricity regulations, an oil and gas emissions cap or a methane cap during the course of the working group's negotiations would be unacceptable to Alberta and risk the viability of the working group’s continued discussions.
“The working group has agreed to timelines for meetings every two to three weeks and to report on agreed upon outcomes throughout our deliberations.”