Premier of Alberta, Jason Kenney speaks at a memorial service at the University of Alberta
Row engulfs Canadian oil sands project
Battle lines are drawn as the contentious Frontier project awaits ultimate verdict
A political squabble has broken out over the Canadian federal cabinet’s pending decision on the large-scale Frontier oil sands mine proposed for northern Alberta by Vancouver-based miner Teck Resources. The cabinet is divided on a final decision, as federal lawmakers attempt to balance the country’s need for natural resource development with its international commitments on climate change. The Alberta provincial government has, in turn, been muttering darkly of dire economic and political consequences if Ottawa says no. A joint federal-provincial review panel found the C$20.6bn (US$15.5bn) Frontier mine to be in the public interest last July. But that was before Prime Minister Justin Trude
Also in this section
16 January 2026
The country’s global energy importance and domestic political fate are interlocked, highlighting its outsized oil and gas powers, and the heightened fallout risk
16 January 2026
The global maritime oil transport sector enters 2026 facing a rare convergence of crude oversupply, record newbuild deliveries and the potential easing of several geopolitical disruptions that have shaped trade flows since 2022
15 January 2026
Rebuilding industry, energy dominance and lower energy costs are key goals that remain at odds in 2026
14 January 2026
Chavez’s socialist reforms boosted state control but pushed knowledge and capital out of the sector, opening the way for the US shale revolution
