Canada will use energy sector as leverage in CUSMA talks, minister says - BERITAJA

Canada’s position arsenic an power exporter is its “strongest card” successful waste and acquisition talks pinch the United States, power and earthy resources curate Tim Hodgson said Friday arsenic the timepiece ticks down to the reappraisal of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Free Trade Agreement (CUSMA).

Ensuring Canada uses its power assemblage arsenic leverage successful waste and acquisition talks is going to beryllium privilege going into his 2nd twelvemonth successful office, Hodgson said astatine an arena successful Toronto.

“I want our power and earthy resources sectors to play the strategically important domiciled it should beryllium playing – arsenic Canada’s strongest cards successful the CUSMA renegotiation,” Hodgson said.

“I spent my full life doing deals. Ultimately, it is about knowing which cards are your champion and playing them effectively. Energy, electricity, wood products, minerals – these are our champion cards,” he added.

Canadian power exports are captious for the U.S. power security, analysis from TD Bank shows. In 2024, Canadian exports of power products (oil, earthy gas, power) to the U.S amounted to about $170 billion.

The study shows immoderate tariffs connected Canadian crude lipid could lead to an contiguous jump successful U.S. gasoline prices of arsenic overmuch arsenic $0.30-0.70 per gallon.

In 2023, Ontario unsocial straight supplied energy to 1.5 cardinal U.S. homes crossed Michigan, Minnesota and New York, TD Bank study shows.

“Remove Canadian power exports from the equation and the waste and acquisition communicative flips. Ex-energy, the U.S. enjoys a waste and acquisition surplus pinch Canada of about C$60 (US$45 billion),” the TD Bank study said.

Canada is besides a cardinal supplier of captious minerals to the U.S., it added.

Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump issued respective pipeline permits to facilitate the proscription of crude lipid and petroleum products betwixt the U.S. and Canada, including a licence for constructing caller pipeline infrastructure.

In his 2nd twelvemonth arsenic power minister, Hodgson said he will attraction connected creating a “coherent strategy” for energy and atomic energy.

“Because each awesome ambition we have, from AI to precocious manufacturing to mineral processing, depends connected reliable and affordable electricity,” he said.

By outpouring of 2027, the national authorities plans to person astatine slightest 5 to 10 caller awesome projects either scope the last finance determination shape aliases moreover break crushed connected construction, Hodgson said.

Ottawa will besides beforehand activity connected the Canada-Alberta pipeline deal.

Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in November past year, laying the groundwork for a caller pipeline.

The flagship connection successful the MOU is simply a bitumen pipeline from Alberta to Canada’s West Coast that would transportation an further 300,000 to 400,000 barrels per time destined for Asian markets.

The task “could adhd an mean of $31.4 cardinal to our GDP each twelvemonth for the adjacent decade, balanced to expanding Canada’s GDP by 1.1 percent annually,” Hodgson said.

“The MOU besides includes plans for atomic and AI information centres successful Alberta, and caller export infrastructure crossed occidental Canada,” he added.