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Joint Responsibility Under Alberta’s Mines and Minerals Act

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On July 20, 2026

In Energy, Natural Resources, Oil & Gas

By: Nigel Bankes

Decisions commented on: Terra Energy Corp (Re), 2023 ABKB 236 (CanLII); Alberta (Energy and Minerals) v Spartan Delta Corp, 2026 ABCA 214 (CanLII); Alberta (Energy and Minerals) v Canadian Natural Resources Limited, 2026 ABCA 213 (CanLII)

PDF Version: Joint Responsibility Under Alberta’s Mines and Minerals Act

Alberta’s Mines and Minerals Act, RSA 2000, c M-17 (MMA) refers to the concept of joint responsibility in two places. Both references were added to the MMA in 2003, see SA 2003, c 18. This post reviews three cases that consider these provisions of the MMA: Terra Energy Corp (Re), 2023 ABKB 236 (CanLII) (Terra Energy), Alberta (Energy and Minerals) v Spartan Delta Corp, 2026 ABCA 214 (CanLII) (Spartan Delta), and Alberta (Energy and Minerals) v Canadian Natural Resources Limited, 2026 ABCA 213 (CanLII) (CNRL).

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$120,000 Penalty for the 2023 Kearl Tailings Overflow

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On July 2, 2026

In Administrative Law, Environmental, Oil & Gas

By: Drew Yewchuk

Regulatory Decision Commented On: AER News Release 2026-06-11, Imperial pleads guilty to EPEA violation in Crown’s summary disposition on Kearl

PDF Version: $120,000 Penalty for the 2023 Kearl Tailings Overflow

On 29 May 2026, Imperial Oil Resources Limited (Imperial) entered a guilty plea to a charge of contravening a term or condition of its Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, RSA 2000, c E-12 (EPEA) approval by releasing a substance from the Kearl oilsands mine in early 2023, and on 11 June 2026 the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) posted a news release publicizing that Imperial would pay a $120,000 penalty, $118,000 of which will go to a creative sentencing project.

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Bitcoin Real Property Law

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On May 26, 2026

In Oil & Gas, Property

By: Nigel Bankes

Decision Commented On: Flowers v Persist Oil and Gas Inc, 2026 ABCA 172 (CanLII)

PDF Version: Bitcoin Real Property Law

In this decision, Alberta’s Court of Appeal has confirmed Justice Christopher Rickards’ decision of the Court of King’s Bench on this matter. 2025 ABKB 142 (CanLII). Both levels of court concluded that neither a surface lease nor a right of entry order provide the operator with the necessary proprietary authorization to run a bitcoin mining operation on the leased lands using natural gas from a compressor located on the lands and licensed by the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER). I refer readers to my ABlawg post on Justice Rickards’ decision for a more detailed examination of the background as well as two related decisions of Alberta’s Land and Property Rights Tribunal.

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Unpaid Oil and Gas Municipal Property Taxes: Another Problem for the AER’s Closure and Liability Management System

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On April 9, 2026

In Administrative Law, Municipal Law, Oil & Gas, Tax

By: Drew Yewchuk

Document Commented On: Property Tax Accountability Strategy (PTAS) Final Report and Recommendations, March 2026

PDF Version: Unpaid Oil and Gas Municipal Property Taxes: Another Problem for the AER’s Closure and Liability Management System

On March 16, 2026, the government of Alberta announced a new report on the ongoing problem of unpaid municipal property taxes by a segment of the Alberta oil and gas industry. The announcement says the report is “the result of the Property Tax Accountability Strategy (PTAS) working group, which comprised Alberta’s government, the Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA), and rural municipal administrators, with support from representatives of the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) and the oil and gas industry as observers.” The PTAS Report includes a description of the problem, along with 17 recommendations to address the problem. This post reviews some highlights of the PTAS Report’s description of the problem and comments on the likely effectiveness of the PTAS Report’s recommendations.

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The Proposed Co-operation Agreement on Environmental and Impact Assessment between Canada and Alberta

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On March 18, 2026

In Administrative Law, Constitutional, Environmental, Indigenous, Natural Resources, Oil & Gas

By: Nigel Bankes

Document Commented On: Draft Co-operation Agreement on Environmental and Impact Assessment between Canada and Alberta, March 6, 2026

PDF Version: The Proposed Co-operation Agreement on Environmental and Impact Assessment between Canada and Alberta

On March 6, 2026 the Governments of Canada and Alberta released a draft co-operation agreement on “Environmental and Impact Assessment”, thereby leading the way to fulfilling one of the undertakings contained in the Memorandum of Understanding on Energy (MOU) signed by the two governments on November 27, 2025. The MOU committed the parties to “Negotiate a cooperation agreement on impact assessments on or before April 1, 2026, that reduces duplication through a single assessment process that respects federal and provincial jurisdictions.” The Draft Agreement is open for comment until March 26, 2026.

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