Smith calls for new southbound pipelines, says U.S. could call ‘first dibs’ on Canadian oil exports

Alberta Premier Danielle noted that while the United States has increased oil production, it still consumes far more than it produces. Photo by David Bloom/Postmedia files

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Alberta Premier Danielle Smith pitched Canadian oil and gas as “the answer” to energy security concerns and the United States administration’s “energy dominance” ambitions, while she called for new cross-border pipelines at a major energy conference in Houston Tuesday.

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“You’ve probably heard we want to build a million barrel a day pipeline to the West Coast. But there are also proponents who would like to build about two and a half million barrels per day of additional egress to the United States,” Smith said at the CERAWeek conference, noting that despite expanding U.S. production, the country remains a net importer of crude oil.

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“Alberta is the answer. I hope you can see we really are.”

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Smith noted that while the U.S. has increased oil production, it still consumes far more than it produces. She pitched Canada as the most logical supplier to fill the gap, particularly given the countries’ deeply integrated pipeline networks. She also reaffirmed her government’s goal to nearly double oil production to roughly eight million barrels per day by 2035.

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While she lamented the cancellation of previous export pipeline projects, including Keystone XL, Energy East and Northern Gateway, Smith said Canada’s energy exports are not an immediate solution to the current global crisis sparked by the U.S.-Israel attack on Iran.

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However, Alberta’s premier suggested that recent crises had pushed Canadian governments to rethink energy policy, shifting from a prioritization of carbon emissions to an increased focus on affordability, security and economic development.

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“The only regret I have is that we didn’t do this 10 years ago,” Smith said. “The next best time is to start now. I think that we now have the ability to have those conversations. We’ve also learned a few things as well.”

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After she noted the costly collapse of Keystone XL — the cross-border project cancelled twice by successive U.S. administrations — Smith pointed to new opportunities.

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She highlighted South Bow Corp.’s partnership with U.S.-based Bridger Pipeline LLC on a proposed crude line using pipe originally intended for Keystone XL, arguing that a U.S. partner could help clear regulatory hurdles.

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“We’ll know when that (open season) closes what the enthusiasm is for that kind of pipeline infrastructure to be built, but I suspect it’s going to be quite high,” Smith said. She added she hoped to see the project benefit from the help of a new White House agency designed to accelerate U.S. energy production — the National Energy Dominance Council.

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Smith said expanding pipeline capacity to the U.S. would give American buyers continued priority access to Canadian crude — a “first dibs” on Canadian exports, Smith said — while also helping Alberta to grow output and indirectly access global markets via the U.S. Gulf Coast.

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She suggested her conversations with industry and political leaders at the Houston conference were frequently on the topic of infrastructure — including a potential new cross-border natural gas export pipeline.