Eby blasts Smith over pipelines, calls them “non-existent”

B.C. Premier David Eby on Thursday dismissed Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's calls to lift the federal West Coast tanker ban, saying her request has no basis in reality.

Source: Facebook

B.C. Premier David Eby on Thursday dismissed Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's calls to lift the federal West Coast tanker ban, saying her request has no basis in reality.

Asked if the ban should be reversed as part of a "grand bargain" to move Alberta oil through northern British Columbia, Eby singled out Smith.

“I’ll say this for Premier Smith from Alberta. She’s an incredible advocate because you would never guess that there is no private proponent. There is no money, there’s no project, there’s no support from First Nations along the coast. In fact, nobody’s talked to them. And this project is non-existent except for in the political discourse,” said Eby.

Eby warned that continued discussion of a hypothetical Alberta pipeline could jeopardize B.C.’s real projects backed by Indigenous partners and investors, such as the recently announced Ksi Lisims LNG project led by the Nisga’a Nation.

Smith has repeatedly argued that federal policy—not a lack of private interest—has been the major barrier to investment. Earlier this year, she warned Prime Minister Mark Carney that anti-energy laws were threatening to strand $14 trillion of resources left in the ground.

“While there appears to be a desire to move forward with new projects, including a west coast bitumen pipeline, a clear commitment is needed to act on barriers that have held back private investment, such as the production cap, the tanker ban, C-69, and the net zero power regulations,” Smith said in June.

Industry leaders have echoed those concerns. Nearly 100 Canadian energy executives and associations signed a letter addressed to Carney on Monday demanding Ottawa cut red tape, repeal the emissions cap, and lift the West Coast tanker ban.

“Clear and urgent action is still required to ensure Canada captures the generational opportunity before us,” the letter stated.

Signatories, including the CEOs of Suncor, Enbridge, Canadian Natural Resources Limited, Imperial Oil, Cenovus and TC Energy, warned that a decade of Liberal policy had delayed investment and disadvantaged Canada globally. They pointed to the tanker ban, the federal carbon levy on large emitters and the Impact Assessment Act as obstacles.

Smith quickly backed the letter, saying Ottawa must reverse Trudeau-era laws.

“Canada needs momentum urgently. I agree with our partners in industry – the federal government must immediately repeal, amend, or replace the damaging Trudeau-era laws that have cost our economy hundreds of billions of dollars and thousands of jobs,” Smith said.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Carney has touted his government’s “major projects” list, which included liquefied natural gas, mining, and nuclear initiatives—but no oil pipelines.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre blasted the omission, saying 39 projects are stuck in the regulatory system.

“After six months, Mark Carney has not approved a single national project anywhere in Canada; it’s really incredible. He was elected, saying, ‘that we are in an unprecedented crisis and we have to move with unimaginable speed.’ So what has he done? He has not permitted a single major mine, pipeline, nuclear plant or anything else,” Poilievre said.

Despite this, Eby celebrated the list of projects, noting that 40 per cent of them were in B.C.

“The list could have entirely been B.C. projects if the priority is on private sector projects, and we're keen to work with the federal government to deliver for all Canadians to grow our independence from the United States, to increase our prosperity for all Canadians, and really to create those jobs that families are looking for,” he said.