PROCESS WEST Magazine

Now that IPP/T and PROCESSWest are officially a part of CPECN, we close off our e-handbook series with the Gas Measurement Handbook. Accurate gas measurement is critical in a wide variety of challenging applications including detection systems, emissions, and separation processes.

Since the energy price downturn in late 2014, and the imposition of increased regulatory burdens and delays by the federal government, beginning in 2015, upstream oil and gas capital expenditures (capex) in Canada has lagged.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s proposal — which at this point has not been enacted and faces stiff opposition from industry groups and conservative lawmakers — would require publicly listed companies to account for their total “life-cycle” greenhouse gas emissions. The rules would apply not only to publicly listed companies south of the border, but also to the more than 230 Canadian companies that are listed on U.S. stock exchanges.

AltaGas Ltd. says it has signed a deal to sell its Alaskan utilities business to TriSummit Utilities Inc. for $1.025 billion. The sale includes Enstar Natural Gas, a gas distribution company in Alaska with about 150,000 customers; the Alaska Pipeline Co., which operates transmission and distribution pipelines for Enstar; the company’s 65 per cent indirect interest in Cook Inlet Natural Gas Storage Alaska; and other ancillary operations.

Building new oil export pipeline infrastructure over the long-term, such as the Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX), Keystone XL, Northern Gateway and Energy East, is critical to enhancing North American energy security and diversifying markets, especially to emerging and developing economies in the Asia-Pacific region.

Rob Hryszko’s phone is ringing off the hook. The calls pour in from executives in Calgary’s oil industry who want to know if he can build them a multimillion-dollar luxury home. Hryszko says yes, sort of, and then asks them to get in line. There are now 28 on the wait list. For Veranda Homes Ltd., a small Canadian family-owned business that usually builds 12 to 15 residences a year, this is a lot. Those at the end of the line won’t get their homes built until 2024.

Plastic is a critical material that enables many aspects of modern life. It is used in food packaging, fabrics, electronics, household products, vehicles, medical supplies – the list goes on and on. But no matter its numerous benefits, there’s no denying that plastic waste is a challenge. And it’s a challenge that innovative Canadian companies are working to solve.

British Columbia is changing its decades-old royalty system, the fees it charges companies to extract publicly owned oil and gas, in an effort to align with provincial climate goals. Premier John Horgan says the “broken system” of fossil-fuel subsidies doesn’t fit with his government’s climate goals or ensure people benefit from the resources.

Members of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee are endorsing calls to create a North American energy alliance that prioritizes responsible production of resources while bolstering continental energy security.A delegation of Canadian officials testified before the committee on Tuesday at the request of Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, who chairs the committee and last month visited Canada’s oil sands to get a firsthand look at operations.