Question Period Note: Oil and Gas Sector Caps

Oil and Gas Sector Caps

• The Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act commits Canada to achieve our Paris targets for 2030 and net-zero emissions by 2050.
• The Government will continue to provide national and international leadership to combat climate change, and we recognize that this requires reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas sector.
• The oil and gas sector is both the largest source of GHG emissions in Canada, as well as a major contributor to jobs and investment.
• We are committed to putting in place measures to ensure that the sector reduces emissions at a pace and scale needed to meet net zero by 2050, with achievable 5-year targets to stay on track.
• Putting these measures in place is essential for Canada to reduce our overall emissions. But it will also require hard work by all involved, and we are committed to getting the approach right.
• I have already asked the Net-Zero Advisory Body, comprised of a group of independent experts from across the country, to give advice to support achievable targets and pathways.
• The Government will also work closely with affected provinces and territories, Indigenous peoples and stakeholders. And we will take into account the need to support workers through this transition.

• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report in October 2018 concluding that global emissions need to reach net-zero around mid-century to limit global warming to 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels. The best available science says this is what is required to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. The Government of Canada introduced the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act to formalize our commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050.

• The Act will set rolling five-year emission reduction targets, require plans to reach each target and reports on progress, require the Government of Canada to publish an annual report describing how departments and crown corporations are considering climate change in their decision making, and enshrine greater accountability and public transparency.

• Work is ongoing to establish the five-year emissions reductions targets and to develop credible, science-based plans for achieving each target.

• The oil and gas sector accounts for roughly one quarter of Canada’s total GHG emissions, and also hundreds of thousands of direct and indirect jobs.

• These plans will incentivize innovation and the adoption of clean fuels and clean technologies, with an expected larger role for low-emitting hydrogen, biofuels, and carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS).

• Globally, the clean technology market is expected to be between $2.5 trillion and $6.4 trillion (USD) by 2022-23. By adopting these changes, Canadian workers and businesses will be positioned to thrive in a low-carbon global economy.

• At the same time, approaches to meeting the net-zero target could have negative competitive impacts on the oil and gas sector. The risk of Canadian production shifting to other jurisdictions, potentially resulting in no emission reductions or increased emissions at the global level, is a key consideration that will be assessed as policy development moves ahead.

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