Category Archives: Oil & Gas

Clearing the Air on Teck Frontier (Extended ABlawg Edition)

By: Andrew Leach and Martin Olszynski

PDF Version: Clearing the Air on Teck Frontier (Extended ABlawg Edition)

Decision Commented On: Teck Resources Limited, Frontier Oil Sands Mine Project, Fort McMurray Area, 2019 ABAER 008/CEAA Reference No. 65505

A lot of ink is currently being spilled over the federal government’s upcoming decision to approve – or not – Teck Resources’ Frontier oil sands mine project. Premier Jason Kenney and members of his Cabinet insist that the Frontier project is critical to Alberta’s economic prosperity. The Mining Association of Canada’s Pierre Graton stresses that Teck completed a “world-class, independent and rigorous assessment” and that the project was determined to be in the public interest by the joint review panel (JRP) that reviewed it. Environmental groups argue that approval is fundamentally inconsistent with Canada’s climate change commitments. The project is being framed as both a test of Prime Minister Trudeau’s resolve to combat climate change and a referendum on the federal government’s support for Alberta’s economic interests and its commitment to national unity.

Our purpose here is not to take sides but rather to lay out the facts and relevant legal context as clearly as possible so that Albertans and indeed all Canadians can come to their own informed views about the desirability, or not, of this project and what, if any, larger importance to attach to the federal Cabinet’s eventual decision. Continue reading →

TMX Litigation Takes an Unusual Turn at the Federal Court of Appeal

By: David V. Wright, Martin Olszynski, and Nigel Bankes

PDF Version: TMX Litigation Takes an Unusual Turn at the Federal Court of Appeal

Case Commented On: Ignace v Canada (Attorney General), 2019 FCA 239 (CanLII)

Last week, the Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) issued another ruling in the TMX saga dealing with the consolidated challenges to the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion (TMX) project. This decision comes just three weeks after Raincoast Conservation Foundation v Canada (Attorney General), 2019 FCA 224 (Can LII) (Raincoast), where the FCA granted leave to six parties to commence judicial reviews challenging the Governor in Council’s decision to re-approve the Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) project. In this most recent decision, Justice David Stratas concluded that two of those six parties, Tsleil Waututh Nation (TWN) and Squamish Nation (Squamish), had filed applications that went beyond the narrow parameters set out in the September 4thcourt order granting leave. Accordingly, the Court issued an order allowing both parties to file amended notices of application that comply with the restrictions in the initial order. In this post, we briefly summarize this latest and fairly unusual development and conclude with a brief comment on what might have led counsel to push the boundaries in this matter. Continue reading →

The Regulation of “Gas Utility” Transmission Pipelines in Alberta

By: Nigel Bankes

PDF Version: The Regulation of “Gas Utility” Transmission Pipelines in Alberta

Decision Commented On: ATCO Gas and Pipelines Ltd. Pembina-Keephills Transmission Pipeline Project August 6, 2019, AUC Decision 23799-D01-2019.

This decision of the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) deals with a large gas transmission pipeline designed to provide additional gas supplies to the Wabamun area (principally to provide fuel for coal to gas conversions of existing coal-fired generating facilities and additional gas generation). The decision reveals the surprising complexity of gas transmission pipeline regulation in Alberta. Continue reading →

Vesting Off Interests in Land – The Latest Dianor Decision

By: Ashley Weldon & Tasha Wood

PDF Version: Vesting Off Interests in Land – The Latest Dianor Decision

Decision Commented On: Third Eye Capital Corporation v Ressources Dianor Inc./Dianor Resources Inc., 2019 ONCA 508 (CanLII)

The Ontario Court of Appeal has released its much anticipated second decision in Third Eye Capital Corporation v Ressources Dianor Inc./Dianor Resources Inc.(Dianor2019). The issue squarely before the Court in this case was whether a vesting order granted in a receivership proceeding could extinguish a third party’s interest in land in the nature of a gross overriding royalty (GOR).  The Court concluded that it had the jurisdiction to do so. This appears to be the first case in Canada to reach this conclusion in the context of a GOR. Continue reading →

Another Interconnection Application Crashes Out

By: Nigel Bankes

PDF Version: Another Interconnection Application Crashes Out

Decision Commented On: AUC Decision 24126-D01-2019, Keyera Energy Ltd, Cynthia Gas Plant Power Plant Application, June 25, 2019

In its Smith decision earlier this year, the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) concluded that a self-generator could only avoid the general “must offer, must exchange” obligations imposed by the Electric Utilities Act, SA 2003, c E-5.1, (EUA; and regulations) and the Hydro and Electric Energy Act, RSA 2000, c H-16, (HEEA) if it fell within one of the prescribed exceptions in the legislative scheme. ABlawg commented on the Smith decision here: Opening a Can of Worms. The AUC followed its Smith decision with two further interconnection applications in April and early June: AUC Decision 23756-DOI-2019, Advantage Oil and Gas Ltd. Glacier Power Plant Alteration, April 26, 2019; and AUC Decision 24393-D01-2019, International Paper Canada Pulp Holdings ULC Request for Permanent Connection for 48-Megawatt Power Plant, June 6, 2019. I commented on these latter two decisions here. Continue reading →