As leading economies work to reduce their reliance on imported petroleum, Canada’s deepening commitment to hydrocarbons could leave our economy vulnerable and exposed in the coming decades. Spurred by a range of factors our nation’s two largest export markets—the United States and China—are competing to develop energy services and solutions based on clean and abundant sources that will never run out.
Canada is doing little to join this race and take advantage of the many opportunities presented by the new-energy transition. Instead, our economic strategy appears to be rooted in an assumption of ever-increasing global demand for our petroleum products. In this respect, we are concerned that we may be sacrificing Canada’s long term stability for short term gain. When everyone else has moved ahead in the new-energy transition, we may well find ourselves scrambling to assemble the necessary talent, incubators, and research facilities to compete on the world stage and uphold our reputation as responsible global citizens.
If we settle for an approach, strategy, or suite of policies that does not drive deep change with the appropriate scope, scale, and speed—we will leave our nation vulnerable to forces beyond our control, and ultimately endanger Canada’s economic future.
