The continued predations by Trump are giving people amnesia about energy projects in this country, and mythologies about what actually happened with projects are taking hold. Energy East is a good example, and people continue to believe fact-free versions of history, or that these projects are somehow still just waiting for approval and that enough political willpower is all that’s needed to get them signed off. But they don’t exist any longer, and the reasons they didn’t move ahead are more complex than the comforting lies they like to tell themselves. As usual, Andrew Leach brought the receipts.
Except: regulatory burdens and myopic political leaders was the reason.https://t.co/z7CYLyW0vl
— Erin O'Toole (@erinotoole) January 24, 2025
The mythology about the demise of Energy East has become a touchstone for certain political stripes, who refuse to let facts get in the way of their imaginary grievance. https://t.co/6ciX8zSL48
— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) January 24, 2025
GNL failed to get provincial approval. TC didn't have enough shippers for 2 pipes and felt, w lots of irony in hindsight, that it had more certainty that it could deliver KXL which had shipping costs. Should we talk about how Gateway was "not a national priority" for your govt?
— Andrew Leach (@andrew_leach) January 24, 2025
Pierre Poilievre then decided to weigh in, because he’s a trustworthy authority on the history of energy investments in this country, particularly in the Harper era. Oh, wait—this is Poilievre, and everything he says is a lie.
Blaming Trudeau for the oil and gas sector carnage post-2014 is like blaming Harper for everything that happened in Canada in 2008-2010. If Trudeau was referring to that as the wave of Harper bankruptcies, he'd look like an idiot too.
— Andrew Leach (@andrew_leach) January 24, 2025
The revived Mackenzie Valley Pipeline, a 1970s concept, was granted federal approval in March of 2011 and yet, somehow, during a strong, stable, conservative majority government it did not begin construction? And you're blaming Trudeau for that? https://t.co/hkSnOVjlmT
— Andrew Leach (@andrew_leach) January 24, 2025
And here's that in a little bit more context for you. The world turned away from oil and gas investment in a big way after 2014 and it hasn't changed much. Blame Trudeau for it if you like, but this graph is hard to explain with him alone. pic.twitter.com/XD3fZFXmTV
— Andrew Leach (@andrew_leach) January 24, 2025
There are so many projects that got approved under the Harper years that never went ahead even during Harper’s majority parliament, but they are happy to blame Trudeau, because it’s a pathology. The 2014 oil crash did permanent damage to the industry, and the recognition of a carbon-constrained future has not helped either. And as much as they like to bemoan “government regulation” on these projects, their attempt at massive de-regulation in the Harper era merely led to a succession of lawsuits and uncertainty, which is what proper regulations seek to avoid. It’s too bad that they refuse to understand that particular lesson.
Ukraine Dispatch
Russia launched a drone and missile strike against Zaporizhzhia overnight Wednesday, killing one and wounding at least 31, leaving tens of thousands without heat or power. Ukraine is drafting new recruitment reforms to attract 18- to -25-year-olds currently exempt from mobilisation orders. NATO’s Secretary General says that he wants the US to keep sending arms to Ukraine, and that he’s sure that Europe will pay for them if necessary.
At night, the Russian army launched missile and drone attacks on Zaporizhzhia, targeting residential areas and infrastructure. As of now, one person has been reported killed as a result of this terror. 26 others were injured, including a two-month-old baby.
During the second… pic.twitter.com/RpbdIbBT1K
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) January 23, 2025
2 killed, 1 injured in Russian drone attack on Kyiv Oblast.
Two people have been killed and one other injured in a drone attack overnight on Jan. 24 targeting Kyiv Oblast, the regional military administration reported.https://t.co/HIEv0omz2y
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) January 24, 2025