Alberta Oil and Gas Sector to Benefit From Over $72 Million Federal Investment in Clean Technology To Help Reduce Pollution and Create Jobs in Alberta

CALGARY, March 14, 2019 /CNW/ - Developing Canada's natural resources in cleaner, more sustainable ways drives our economy, by creating good, middle-class jobs, improving the environmental performance of Canada's oil and gas sector and helping to address climate change.

The Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, today announced $72.3 million to Alberta companies, Canadian Natural Resources Limited (Canadian Natural) and Titanium Corporation Inc., to fund three clean technology projects in Alberta's oil and gas sector.  This funding will leverage more than $415 million in investments.

• Canadian Natural will receive $5 million from the Clean Growth Program (CGP) to further develop an in-pit extraction process that separates oil sands ore into solids, bitumen and water at its Horizon Oil Sands mine site, thus reducing the number of diesel trucks and the amount of power needed. Emissions Reduction Alberta is also investing $5.6 million to support this project through its Oil Sands Innovation Challenge.
• Canadian Natural will also receive $22.3 million from the Low Carbon Economy Fund (LCEF) for a new steam turbine generator technology that will help produce power for its facilities at the Athabasca Oil Sands Project (AOSP) while reducing emissions. The AOSP is owned by Canadian Natural, Chevron Canada Limited and Shell Canada Limited.
• Titanium Corporation will receive a total of $45 million from the CGP and LCEF for a technology designed to remediate oil sands tailings at Canadian Natural's Horizon Oil Sands site. The project has the potential to create a new high-value minerals industry for Western Canada by facilitating the recovery of valuable minerals (zircon and titanium-bearing minerals) from oil sands tailings. An additional $10 million has been committed by Emissions Reduction Alberta to further support this project.

Through Canada's national energy dialogue, Generation Energy, Canadians made it clear that clean energy solutions are not a luxury but a necessity for Canada's low-carbon future. Canada will continue to support clean energy projects that create jobs, support investment and industry competitiveness, advance our clean future and help realize our global climate change goals.

Quotes

"These projects provide Alberta's oil and gas sector with solutions that will help reduce pollution, drive clean innovation and create good jobs. Accelerating clean technology development is a key component of our government's approach to promoting sustainable economic growth as Canada moves toward a low-carbon economy."

The Honourable Amarjeet Sohi
Canada's Minister of Natural Resources

"Canadians across the country are coming up with innovative and affordable solutions to increase energy efficiency and reduce emissions, saving people money and creating good jobs along the way. By investing in these projects, from coast to coast to coast, the Government of Canada is making sure we are positioned to succeed in the $26-trillion global market for clean solutions and to create good middle-class jobs today and for the future."

The Honourable Catherine McKenna
Canada's Minister of Environment and Climate Change

"Canadian Natural, and Canada's oil and natural gas sector, recognize the need to reduce GHG emission intensities, and we have been able to leverage technology and Canadian ingenuity to deliver significant results. In fact, Canadian Natural's Horizon Oil Sands operations has reduced our GHG intensity by 31 percent from 2012 to 2017. At today's production levels, that's equivalent to taking 665,000 cars off the road. Canada's oil and natural gas should be considered a premium product and have a major role for decades to come in providing responsibly produced, low GHG-intensity oil and natural gas to growing economies while reducing overall global GHG emissions."

Tim McKay, President
Canadian Natural Resources Limited

"This significant funding commitment from the Government of Canada is a critical step in advancing the first implementation of our Creating Value from Waste™ clean technology. Government and industry support and collaboration has been invaluable in moving our project forward and developing this made-in-Canada solution for the benefit of all stakeholders."

Scott Nelson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Titanium Corporation

"Emissions Reduction Alberta's strategic approach to investing responds to the needs of Alberta's industry and innovation system. Our support attracts federal partnerships and other funding, providing leverage to accelerate technology solutions. Aligning on clean technology innovation helps advance projects that drive improvements in Alberta's cost and carbon competitiveness."

Steve MacDonald, CEO
Emissions Reduction Alberta

Quick Facts

• Natural Resources Canada's Clean Growth Program (CGP) is a $155-million investment fund that helps to advance emerging clean technologies toward commercial readiness so that natural resource operations can further reduce their impacts on air, land, and water, while enhancing competitiveness and creating jobs.
• The Low Carbon Economy Fund is divided into two parts:
  1. The Leadership Fund provides up to $1.4 billion to provinces and territories to leverage investments in projects and programs that will generate clean growth and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to support the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change.
  2. The Challenge component provides over $500 million in funding to support projects that leverage ingenuity across the country to reduce emissions and generate clean growth. The Challenge is being delivered through two streams:
• The Champions stream, valued at $450 million, was open to provinces, territories, municipalities, Indigenous communities and organizations, businesses and not-for-profit organizations.
• The Partnerships stream, valued at $50 million, was launched on December 20, 2018, and is targeting smaller applicants, including small businesses, not-for-profit organizations, smaller municipalities and Indigenous communities and organizations.

Related Links

Clean Growth Program Project - Titanium
Clean Growth Program – Canadian Natural
Low Carbon Economy Fund

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SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

Vanessa Adams, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Natural Resources, 343-543-7645, [email protected]; Media Relations, Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, 343-292-6100

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