2015 Board of
Directors
Key Issues for Oil and Gas in Calgary
Executive Chair: Rob Hawley, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Immediate Past Chair: Leah Lawrence, President, Clean Energy Capitalists Inc. Chair Elect: Denis Painchaud, Director, International Government Relations, Nexen Inc. Second Vice Chair: David Allen, President, Calgary Land, Brookfield Residential Properties Inc. Vice Chair, Finance: Bill Brunton, Chief Communications Officer, Calgary Board of Education CEO: Adam Legge, President and CEO, Calgary Chamber
Directors David Allen, President, Calgary Land, Brookfield Residential Properties Inc. Carlos Alvarez, Audit Partner, KPMG Lorenzo DeCicco, Vice-President, TELUS Business Solutions Rob Hawley, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Wellington Holbrook, Executive Vice-President, ATB Financial Phil Roberts, Director of BD & Marketing, Vintri Technologies Linda Shea, Senior Vice-President, AltaLink Mike Williams, Executive Vice-President, Corporate Services, Encana James Boettcher, Chief Idea Officer, Fiasco Gelato Brent Cooper, Partner, McLeod Law LLP Management Adam Legge – President and CEO Michael Andriescu – Director of Finance and Administration Kim Koss – Vice President, Business Development Scott Crockatt – Director of Marketing and Communications Rebecca Wood – Director of Member Services Justin Smith – Director of Policy, Research and Government Relations Leading Business magazine is a co-publication of the Calgary Chamber and Business in Calgary Calgary Chamber 600, 237 8th Avenue S.E. Calgary, Alberta T2G 5C3 Phone: (403) 750-0400 Fax: (403) 266-3413 calgarychamber.com
Falling prices: The price of oil has been dropping at an astronomical rate over the past few months. In the face of all this volatility, some companies have been tightening their belts – whether by scaling back expenses and laying off employees or scaling back on capital spending. This has major implications for our economy. A recent report by CanOils estimates that less than 20 per cent of Canada’s top 50 oil and gas companies can sustain their long-term operations at $50 per barrel. When the oil industry hurts so does Alberta’s and Canada’s economy.
Solution: While geopolitical trends and market volatility are near impossible for the Alberta and Canadian governments to influence, an effort must be made to take advantage of the areas in which they do have control. There must be an effort to bring down the cost of producing oil. Excessive red tape, including environmental regulations and drawn-out permitting processes, must be re-evaluated, in light of the new marketplace. The high marginal costs associated with the oilsands are a key factor why we are so susceptible to this type of volatility. By bringing these
costs down wherever possible, we can strengthen the oil and gas industry, and ensure economic prosperity.
Meeting future global demand: The future of global oil demand is in the developing world. Currently, our only buyer of crude oil is the United States, and even as their economy grows at a rapid pace, the shale boom is making Canadian supply increasingly less relevant. Therefore, it is vital that the oil and gas industry is able to take advantage of future opportunities.
Solution: The only way to break the monopoly that the United States has on Canadian oil is to access growing markets in China and the developing world. This means the approval of large infrastructure projects such as Trans Mountain and Energy East, so that Alberta’s oil can go where it is most needed – as safely and economically as possible. Not only will this help our oil and gas producers to compete on a global stage, but will also help industry better position itself to move with the international marketplace.