Several Alberta-based clean energy projects will be bolstered by millions in funding from the federal government, but the premier says the feds’ net-zero goals remain far-fetched.
Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson announced, during a Monday morning event in Calgary, a total pledge of more than $175 million toward 12 new wind, solar and smart-grid projects in the province.
‘Search the landfill’ protests planned across Canada for Monday
Smith also took exception with the International Energy Agency’s oil production projections and described Wilkinson’s Sunday night comments at the congress, based on those projections, as going over like a “lead balloon.”
“To come to a major energy conference, an international energy conference, with people from all different backgrounds, many of them facing energy poverty in their own countries, and talking to producers about the ludicrous IEA projections that were only going to have 25 million barrels of oil per day produced in 2050, it was a bit of a slap in the face,” Smith said.
“I don’t believe that those projections are accurate. I was pleased to see the head of Saudi Aramco said the same thing. The IEA has turned from being an entity that does predictions to being one that engages in political advocacy and I don’t think that’s very helpful to the discussion.”
— with files from Global News’ Craig Momney