A few quick points.
With the recent holes in all of the so-called "action plans" on climate
change so big you could drive one of the tarsand trucks carrying 400
tonnes of earth through it, the updating of projected costs here is a
giant challenge-- a gauntlet drop, if you will-- at the feet of the
Federal government.
The MGP is now well known to be, despite being the largest industrial
project in settler Canada's history at the time it was first conceived,
just a mere inflow into the vast energy needs of the tarsands. As
Liberals, NDP, Conservatives, BQ and Greens all want to maintain the
operation of the tarsands in varying forms, this is all clouded by the
secret calls from the American government to heighten American oil
shipments *five times*-- making tarsand oil a very good substitute for
Iraqi oil, in terms of volume (not net energy), while the Iraqi and
perhaps Iranian oil remains off the ship-to-America grid.
The MGP, now to be constructed at a volume of 1.1 billion cubic feet a
day, would be more than 1/5th of the final needs of the tarsands, should
the US dept. of Energy get their wish from Canada. The rest would be
Alaska, northern BC, southern Alberta and massive new nuclear plants.
These plans will steamroll over the "officially" opposing communities of
Fort Good Hope and the entire Deh Cho region, never mind the rest of the
Valley and the Dene Thá in northern Alberta.
The image we are fed is Energy companies on one end vs. the Nations in
opposition on the other; the reality is that the Federal government,
without opposition that is able to stop them in their tracks, is just as
desperate to produce the pipeline system that will be the beginning of
the full-blown industrialization of both Denendeh and the rest of the
north, and the Deh Cho, to have a chance to invoke some of the more
revolutionary concepts of self-determination put forward, need serious
help from allies south of 60. This $16.2B new price tag will get a lot
of verbal opposition but, unless another consortium to build the gas
lines is able to come along and underbid, the Mackenzie Gas Project will
go ahead unless the entire tar sands project is stopped in its tracks.
Those who see the threats to water, to massively spike climate change,
who see this oil going south as feeding the occupation of Iraq and
consolidating colonialism in Canada should see the "no sooner" than 2014
and the ballooning price (which is slated to come out of tax subsidies,
but it will be approved without our stopping them) as some incredibly
useful signs of hope, should we turn them to our advantage. Not allowing
that gas to Alberta prevents heavy oil going south and helps strengthen
the hand of the resistance in Iraq. It also slows the plans in Alberta,
only conceived in a world of peak oil production, from helping flood out
millions of the poorest communities throughout the lowlands of the world.
It's all connected, like a web of pipelines as yet unbuilt. Stop the
Mackenzie Gas Project. Stop the tarsands.
Macdonald
Mackenzie gas project to cost $16.2B: Imperial Oil
Last Updated: Monday, March 12, 2007 | 11:39 AM CT
The cost of the proposed Mackenzie natural gas project in the Northwest
Territories is now pegged at $16.2 billion, Imperial Oil said Monday.
The Calgary-based oil and gas company also revealed that production startup
will be no sooner than 2014.
Imperial disclosed the costs and timing details in a filing with the
National Energy Board and Joint Review Panel.
A consortium led by Imperial wants to build a 1,220-kilometre pipeline along
the Mackenzie Valley in the Northwest Territories to the Alberta border,
where it would connect with existing pipelines and link to southern markets.
The consortium also includes ConocoPhillips Canada, Shell Canada, ExxonMobil
Canada and Aboriginal Pipeline Group.
Imperial said in its filing with regulators that the massive project will
cost an estimated $3.5 billion for the gas-gathering system, $7.8 billion
for the Mackenzie Valley pipeline, plus $4.9 billion to develop the gas
fields to feed the project.
_________________________________________________________
Politicians optimistic despite Mackenzie project cost hike
Last Updated: Tuesday, March 13, 2007 | 11:01 AM CT
CBC North
Politicians in the Northwest Territories remain optimistic that the proposed
Mackenzie pipeline will be built, despite being caught by surprise Monday
when Imperial Oil announced the estimated cost of the project was more than
double previous estimates.
When it disclosed the latest costs and timing details in a filing with the
National Energy Board and Joint Review Panel, Imperial revealed that the
project will cost an estimated $16.2 billion, compared to the previous
estimate of $7.5 billion.
The company also said production will start no sooner than 2014, which is
three years later than the previous startup date.
The magnitude of the cost increase surprised Brendan Bell, the N.W.T's
minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, but he said Monday that the
pipeline clearly needs federal government investment if it is going to be
built.
"We think the project still makes sense, but it is going to require some
support and some help," he said.
Imperial Oil senior vice-president Randy Broiles has said the company hopes
to hear from Ottawa soon regarding what it can do to help.
Federal Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice said Monday that Ottawa remains
committed to the Mackenzie project, but he would not discuss what specific
commitments it may undertake.
"The increased costs result in increased challenges, but I am continued to
be optimistic," Prentice said.
'I don't think they're just going to throw that away'
A consortium led by Imperial wants to build a 1,220-kilometre pipeline from
Inuvik, along the Mackenzie Valley in the Northwest Territories and into the
Alberta border, where it would connect with existing pipelines and link to
southern markets.
Inuvik Mayor Derek Lindsay said Imperial should not turn back on the project
at this time. politicians
"Between Imperial and their partners, they spent a lot of money already on
this pipeline — about $600 million — so I don't think they're just going to
throw that away," Lindsay said. "They got a lot invested in this already."
But Ian Doig, an analyst with industry bulletin Doig's Report, said given
the new $16.2-billion cost, he is skeptical Imperial and its partners can
convince Ottawa to buy into the project.
Doig said the proposal lacks momentum because there have been no new
significant gas discoveries in the Mackenzie Delta, and there has been
little public interest in the pipeline outside of the North.
Imperial Oil reaffirmed Monday its commitment to finishing the lengthy
regulatory process, but company officials say it may take another two years
before they make a decision about whether to build the pipeline.
The project consortium also includes ConocoPhillips Canada, Shell Canada,
ExxonMobil Canada and Aboriginal Pipeline Group.
