Toronto, November 27, 2025: The announcement of Ottawa and Alberta signing off on a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on a pipeline from Alberta to the BC Coast is welcome, but barely a baby step in the right direction. The Coalition of Concerned Manufacturers and Businesses Canada (CCMBC) is very supportive of more oil and gas pipelines as they are the most significant way to boost Canada’s failing economy and lagging productivity in the medium to long run. Many manufacturers outside of Alberta are reliant on the oil and gas sector for their business success.

CCMBC President Catherine Swift said “It is well known that there will be massive opposition to any pipeline to the BC Coast. As PM Carney has claimed that the BC government and First Nations will effectively have a veto over this development, it is unlikely to ever happen under this Liberal government.”

During the election, Carney promised to “do things previously thought impossible at speeds we haven’t seen in generations”. To date, what has been done is create a few new federal bureaucracies, re-announce so-called “major” projects that were initially announced years ago, and travel extensively around the world making agreements to keep talking with countries that mostly do very little business with Canada. “In terms of tangible progress, there has been very little accomplished by Carney to date, and certainly nothing at great speed”, Swift noted.

Even if all conditions were perfect and there was no opposition, it would take years to build a pipeline. The current plan is to get shovels in the ground by 2029. Furthermore, the “conditions” Alberta must accept to be permitted to build the theoretical pipeline are punitive, imprecise and misleading. Alberta will be required to impose an even higher industrial carbon tax that its competitors don’t face, and undertake a very expensive carbon capture, utilization and storage project that many industry experts view as pointless. Swift commented “Canadian businesses and consumers will be facing even higher energy costs because of this project.”

Realistically, the best course for Canada to spur economic growth in the short term is to reach a trade agreement with the US. Yet this is something Carney apparently believes is unimportant as indicated by his “who cares” comment about speaking with US President Trump. Swift concluded “Pipelines absolutely should be pursued vigorously in Canada. Considering the extensive lead time to build a pipeline, we should also be targeting initiatives that would bear fruit more quickly. Reaching a trade agreement with the US to provide short-term certainty to businesses and investors would be the best way to accomplish that.”

_________________________________________

The CCMBC was formed in 2016 with a mandate to advocate for proactive and innovative policies that are conducive to manufacturing and business retention and safeguarding job growth in Canada. For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact Catherine Swift at swifty4488@outlook.com or 416 816 7248.