Speaking Points. Honourable Doug Horner Deputy Premier Minister of Advanced Education and Technology

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Speaking Points. Honourable Doug Horner Deputy Premier Minister of Advanced Education and Technology"

Opal Carroll
6 years ago
Views:

1 Speaking Points Honourable Doug Horner Deputy Premier Minister of Advanced Education and Technology The Energy Forum Harvard Club of New York Gordon Reading Room 35 West 44th Street New York, NY Thursday, January 28, :00 to 8:30 p.m. (20 minutes) CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

2 Introduction Thank you, everyone, for joining us this evening. I d also like to thank our key sponsor for tonight s event Tecterra. Tecterra is a national centre of excellence based in Alberta. It s focused on developing solutions for the integrated and sustained management of Alberta s resources which means they re actively involved in what I want to talk about tonight. I know that my colleague the Honourable Rob Renner, Alberta s Minister of Environment spoke to you last spring. That means you already know that Alberta offers the U.S. a reliable, secure source of energy. You already know that Alberta s oil sands have attracted billions of dollars of investment from all over the world. And you already know that they ve attracted their share of criticism. So Alberta finds itself in the position of having the energy the world needs to help power a return to economic growth yet at the same time, we face criticism for developing it. The oil sands are a world-class resource. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 1

3 We also recognize that we have a world-class responsibility one that we take very seriously. That s why we re focused on and investing in research and development to create the technologies we need to produce clean energy. The reason I m here tonight is to pick up where Rob left off to talk about our advancements and innovations that we re pursuing in the oil sands and other areas. My goal is for you to leave this room knowing 3 things that Alberta is home to great innovations and innovators, that our researchers are applying what we ve learned in the oil patch to benefit our research in other priority areas like health research and biotechnology solutions, and that Alberta offers great opportunities for partnership and investment with returns that are both financially viable and contribute to the greater social good. Technology and Energy Production Alberta s oil sands underlie more than 54,000 square miles of the province. That s about the size of Florida. And they contain over 170 billion barrels of recoverable oil. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 2

4 But oil sands don t gush out of the ground like oil in Saudi Arabia. Actually, they seep. When they first saw the oil sands, explorers in the 1700s figured people would never be able to live there because the land was saturated in the stuff. No one thought Alberta could extract oil from the oil sands when we first tried. But we did it. We ve invested in decades of research to develop the technologies to separate oil from the sand that holds it...and convert it to gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Thanks to that investment and the tenacity of our researchers these oil deposits have been transformed from an unreachable opportunity into a major resource providing a dramatic example of the partnerships that can be forged between ingenuity and commerce between the certainty of technology and the hunches of risk taking. Today, Alberta s oil sands produce almost 1.3 million barrels per day of crude oil or about 45% of Canada s total crude output. But that s not the end of the story. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 3

5 Since about 80% of Alberta s oil sands are too deep for surface mining, we ve developed technology that involves drilling horizontal wells from the surface. Steam-assisted gravity drainage...or SAG-D is a vast change in the technology with no mine and no tailings ponds. It is the next generation of oil sands. SAG-D and its variations are just one way we re reducing our environmental footprint. We re also advancing rapidly on how water is used in the process. When he was here in March, Rob would have told you that Alberta places strict limits on fresh water use by industry. We don t use fresh, drinkable water. In fact, many companies recycle over 90% of the water used in their operations. We re also working hard on water treatment techniques that are more sophisticated when it comes to treating contaminants. For example, we re currently working with General Electric to develop membranes that use nanofiltration which requires less pressure so energy costs are lower. We re making pores tiny enough to screen out organisms, metals, salts, bacteria and viral contaminants. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 4

6 The end result will be a better, smarter filter to solve separation challenges but not just in the oil patch. Applications extend to use in the pharmaceutical and other industries and for wide-scale water purification for human consumption This is just one example of how we re using valuable insights gained from unlocking our oil and gas resources and applying them to develop new knowledge and technologies technologies that can benefit people around the world. Because at the end of the day it s about being part of a larger, global community. It s about accepting our responsibility for a world-class resource. And like I said earlier that s a responsibility that we take very seriously. You can bet that s a key part of the story that our critics neglect to include when they talk about the oil sands. Contrast Between Oil Sands and Cities They like to show you photos like this. This is a working oil sands mine. Is it pretty? No. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 5

7 Is it different from open pit mining that occurs all over the world? No. Can we do better? Yes. And we re getting better all the time. Will it look like this forever? Absolutely not. Here s why. Legislation in Alberta requires that this land must be reclaimed according to strict environmental standards. It s the law. Companies must remediate and reclaim every inch of land they disturb, so it can be productive again. Also by law, industry must provide financial security to cover future reclamation efforts for their projects before a shovel even hits the dirt. As of March 31, 2009, the Alberta government holds over $1 billion (CDN) in security. The NGOs will tell you that we re mining an area the size of Florida. That s simply not true. They are right about one thing the oil sands themselves are the size of Florida. But the area that s actually been disturbed is only the size of Cape Canaveral. Here s another map one that shows the area that we have to reclaim. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 6

8 Yes it s the same as the last map. That s because everything we mine, we have to reclaim. It s that simple. And here are actual photos of what it looks like once we re done. These buffalo are grazing on what used to be an active oil sands site. That s a real contrast to any of the major cities around the world. They all look pretty much the same today as they did 30 years ago. And they ll all probably look the same 100 years from now. My point is this. It s safe to say that any major city in the world does not have a reclamation plan to return its site to the original environment it displaced. Ironically, we re comparing cities where people use oil every day to power their vehicles and heat their homes and businesses to the very source of the oil itself. Yet, the land where the oil comes from ends up being in much better shape environmentally than those cities could ever hope to be. And the fact is reclamation knowledge, standards and practices continue to evolve. As new technology, knowledge and expertise become available, companies in Alberta are being held to higher and higher reclamation standards. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 7

9 Work taking place today advances in areas like water use, emission controls and tailings management are heralding changes that will alter the face of the oil sands industry even more over the next decade. And that s right in line with the direction set by our nations leaders. Carbon Capture and Storage You may recall that President Obama s first meeting outside the U.S. with an international head of state was with Canadian Prime Minister Harper in Ottawa. At that time, they both articulated a desire to cooperate on clean energy technologies like carbon capture and storage. When Rob spoke to you last spring, he told you that we were the first jurisdiction in North America to legislate limits for large emitters across all sectors and that we re the only ones who require them to pay if they don t meet the targets. He would ve also told you that our government has committed $2 billion (CDN) to commercial scale carbon capture and storage projects. I m here to tell you in just 10 months, we ve identified our partners and we re ready to cut the cheques. We re working with CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 8

10 Enhance Energy and North West Upgrading, Shell and its partners, Swan Hills Synfuels, and TransAlta Utilities and its partners. The projects will focus on coal gasification and electricity generation as well as a pipeline that ll move carbon dioxide from an oil sands upgrader to depleted oilfields for use in enhanced oil recovery. Our $2 billion fund is one of the largest commitments to this technology in the world from a province of only 3.5 million people. And we re not stopping there. We know our future depends on how we care for the land. Certainly our past did. Our early settlers had to be responsible stewards as they farmed the land. Extracting the oil sands may be relatively new, but Alberta has many decades of experience as an energy producer. We understand that energy production is a long-term business one we plan to be in decades from now. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 9

11 That s a priority to Albertans because the land where companies are extracting energy belongs to Albertans not to private corporations. It s our responsibility. We know that our future prosperity and our quality of life depend on the responsible development of our energy resources. So when I tell you that we ve got our best people working on carbon capture and storage, I want you to understand that includes 3 Albertans who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 for their work on the issue. We plan on becoming the centre of global excellence and expertise in carbon capture and storage. And we intend to share that expertise with the world. Just last week, Alberta s Premier Ed Stelmach signed a memorandum of understanding on carbon capture and storage with the Government of Abu Dhabi. The agreement commits us both to sharing technologies and policies, supporting projects of mutual interest, and exploring opportunities for collaboration between public and private partners in both jurisdictions. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 10

12 That s not to say that carbon capture and storage is the only way to solve the world s greenhouse gas emission challenge. We all recognize that we need to transition to cleaner sources of energy. But that s not going to happen overnight. We can t just turn our lights off for 15 years until alternative energy sources are ready to turn the lights back on. What we can do though is work together to find ways to make our current sources of energy cleaner until we find better alternatives. So I m here to tell you two things we want to be your energy supplier during the transition and we want to partner with you to find those end solutions that we all need so we can continue to bring you energy long after our oil and gas days are done. During the transition, there are economic benefits to the U.S. continuing to import Canadian oil. According to a recent study as oil sands production and investment in Canada increase so does demand for U.S. goods and services. In fact, the study estimates that by 2015, oil sands production and investment in Canada will add $34 billion (USD) to your economy. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 11

13 The study also said that oil sands development is expected to lead to the creation of more than 342,000 new U.S. jobs over the next 5 years. That means thanks to our trading relationship the more Canadian oil you buy the more goods and services we re able to buy from you. So in short we re putting dollars in your pockets today and together we re going to solve the long-term challenges for tomorrow. Alberta as an innovator We re using what we ve learned through our work in nanotechnology in geomatics in ICT and in biotechnology to develop the smart technology we need unlock the oil sands. That s why Canada s National Institute of Nanotechnology is located in our province at the University of Alberta. We ve also championed the establishment of Tecterra a national centre of excellence in the application of geomatics and sensing technologies. Researchers at Tecterra are working with industry to bring together geospatial, mapping and advanced decision support systems to help industry more accurately and sustainably determine where and where not to drill, mine or develop infrastructure. At our universities, multidisciplinary research teams are influencing the whole spectrum of energy production CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 12

14 from reducing energy inputs during production to reducing water use, enhancing tailings remediation and eliminating the need for tailings entirely, reducing emissions from coal, improving yields in energy, improving the safety of energy production, and developing sensors to measure and monitor precious land, air and water resources. We re also looking beyond oil and gas to those end solutions to sources of renewable energy. Alberta-based scientists are developing a tiny, portable fuel cell that can run on a variety of fuels including hydrogen, natural gas and other hydrocarbons. Meanwhile, researchers at the National Institute for Nanotechnology have engineered an inexpensive, improved performance, plastic solar cell or hybrid organic solar cell. And at our Alberta Bioconversion Network, researchers in Alberta s agriculture, forest and bioindustries are collaborating to develop new products, reduce waste and add value to Alberta s biomass resource. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 13

15 These are just few examples of the renewable energy sources that we re seriously exploring. Of course, as we ve unlocked the oil sands, one of the benefits of pursuing expertise in platform technologies like nanotechnology, geomatics and ICT is that we can apply what we ve learned to other sectors. I like to think of it this way when President Kennedy declared that your nation should commit itself to landing a man on the moon, he committed you to a lot more than that. He committed you to developing the technology necessary to make it happen. And from that technology...many innovations have been adapted for use here on earth from protective clothing for fire fighters to TV satellite dishes to medical imaging...and so much more as you know. That s how we re looking at the oil sands. We re going to continue to develop the technologies we need to extract the oil sands in the most environmentally responsible way possible. Then we re going to take those technologies...and apply them to societal challenges being faced around the world. Earlier, I mentioned our work with GE that s using nanotechnology to improve water separation which will result in our ability to purify water for human consumption on a large scale. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 14

16 We re also developing nanomaterials with 3M to address pipeline wear, which is a significant cost to the oil patch. Again, similar concepts can be applied to technology that delivers clean water to rural and remote communities around the world. These kinds of innovations take on a whole new light when we think about communities who need it most like those in Haiti who are without clean water supplies right now. We re also looking forward to results that we know will come out of our partnership with leading nanotechnology researchers at Rice University in Houston. Combining the energy and nanotechnology expertise of the teams in Texas and Alberta could help bring about clean energy technology solutions that haven't even been imagined yet. The great thing is that there s a lot of cross over among our research and development initiatives. And not just in the energy sector but also in the biotech and health research sectors. For example, Dr. Leo Behie is a professor of chemical engineering at the University of Calgary. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 15

17 Dr. Behie s research is unusual, because it applies the basic principles of chemical reaction engineering to the animal cell biotechnology field, the energy sector and the environmental field. He has worked on developing a new process to upgrade Canadian heavy oils. And as one of the leading bioengineering authorities in the world, he has also pioneered a new area of biomedical engineering that will ultimately result in successful treatment of currently incurable diseases and medical conditions conditions like Parkinson s, diabetes, Huntington s, multiple sclerosis, brain and spinal cord injuries, and breast and brain cancers. Dr. Behie s work in multiple fields with a variety of collaborators demonstrates that science is collaborative rather than competitive in Alberta. That s just one of the reasons why international research organizations multinational companies and globally recognized academics are working with our government and university researchers to develop, test and evaluate new technologies and innovative approaches. For example, researchers from the University of Alberta are collaborating with the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres. With a $25 million grant from our government, they re driving innovation in 3 areas of cleaner energy production: improved oil sands tailings management, CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 16

18 advanced reclamation methods and greenhouse gas reduction technologies. When it comes to multinational companies in Alberta, I ve already mentioned our nanotechnology work with GE and 3M. In fact, GE is working on other areas of interest in Alberta as well, including software development, financing, sales and engineering applications. They also have a heavy oil centre in Calgary. HP is in Alberta. We re collaborating with them on leading-edge cancer research. Bose is in Alberta. Together, we announced the new Bose Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering Technology Development Centre just this past November. Hitachi is in Alberta too. The Hitachi Electron Microscopy Products Development Centre at the National Institute for Nanotechnology is home to the first-ever Hitachi environmental transmission electron microscope in operation outside of Japan. Innovations in Alberta Benefit the World It s not just multinational companies who ve come to Alberta. Alberta is home to innovators and innovations that many of you know well. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 17

19 Like Acticoat bandages the bandages coated with silver nano particles that were used to treat 9/11 burn victims. Like Heptovir a leading Hepatitis B treatment licensed for sale in hundreds of countries. Like SMART Boards the world s first interactive whiteboard that is now...i suspect in almost every boardroom around the world. Like Cold fx as close to a cure for the common cold the world has seen. Like the potential cure for diabetes the breakthrough islet cell treatment system called the Edmonton Protocol. You get the idea I really could go on and on. And I haven t even touched on the brain research and cancer research and heart research that Alberta is known for around the world. My point is that Alberta-made innovations aren t just world-class they re benefitting the world. And we ve just made some changes in Alberta that will make it even easier for such innovations to come to light. Alberta Innovates As the new year began, 5 new agencies started their work to strengthen Alberta s ability to use science to seek solutions to societal challenges CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 18

20 like climate change, water conservation, health research and food safety that we can share with our American neighbours, as well as global markets. Collectively, those agencies are called Alberta Innovates. Together, they re fostering an ecosystem of innovation that is exciting everyone from scientists involved in basic research to businesses and entrepreneurs who want to invest in ideas and transform them into products and services to be marketed globally. I like to compare our new Alberta Innovates to a high-tech, high-speed train. We started on solid ground the best foundation that you could ever imagine through our commitment to basic research and talented people. And over the last several years, we ve been laying down the tracks. In 2006, we took a big step forward by aligning all 26 of Alberta s postsecondary institutions to create Campus Alberta. This was crucial to marshal our research strengths across Alberta. In 2008, we launched our action plan for Bringing Technology to Market. This action plan is creating a better pipeline of opportunities for investment. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 19

21 From youth technopreneurs to marketing expertise to prototype development to the brand new $100 million Alberta Enterprise Corporation we laid more tracks in our path to the next generation economy. Now with Alberta Innovates we have a train that can be set in motion. And we have the best people in the world on that train. The engine of our train is comprised of 4 outstanding corporations and a new international advisory body that will work together with our many stakeholders and partners throughout the system. The corporations are focused on our strategic priorities biotechnology solutions, energy and environment solutions, health research solutions, and technology commercialization. With the new alignment among these agencies, we re focused on our priorities. And we re open for business. Conclusion You ve heard me talk a lot this evening about partnerships. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 20

22 We know that Alberta is a small jurisdiction on the global stage. We know we can t do it all by ourselves. That s why we seek out partners. That s why we re here this week. I encourage you I challenge you to get involved to come work in partnership with us to help produce cleaner energy and be part of the solution. Alberta is going to lead the way on the next generation of energy just as America was going to put a man on the moon. Then we ll go a step beyond that. We re going to apply what we learn so we can find solutions to societal challenges faced by communities all around the world. I encourage you to speak with me or with any of my staff here this evening and let us know how we can work together. Thank you again for the opportunity to speak with you this evening. On that note, I d like to open the floor to your questions. CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 21

Oil. SANDS Myths CLEARING THE AIR. Compiled by

Oil. SANDS Myths CLEARING THE AIR. Compiled by Compiled by Climate change 1. Alberta s greenhouse gas legislation does not require real reductions in emissions from oil sands operations. The Spin: Alberta is a leader in how we manage greenhouse gases...