ARC ENERGY IDEAS

Just like other businesses across the country, Canadian oil and gas producers are suffering from a loss of demand for their products due to the COVID-19 lockdowns. Responding to the unprecedented business disruption, the Canadian federal government has now announced a 75 percent wage subsidy up to a maximum level. This is welcome news for companies across the country, including in the Canadian oil...

In big parts of Canada and the United States, people are being asked to stay home to avoid spreading Coronavirus. This week we review the latest information on COVID-19 infection rates and the implications for North American oil demand. With the United States being the only export market for Canadian oil, the rapid collapse of demand in key consuming regions ripples all the way up the pipelines to...

The effects of COVID-19 are reaching all aspects of our day-to-day lives. Stock markets are being hit hard, businesses are closing, and people are staying at home. On this episode we give an update on the rapidly changing situation considering the escalating impacts on the United States and Europe, and implications for oil demand. Amidst all this demand destruction, Saudi and Russia seem intent on...

Oil prices have collapsed due to the Saudi Arabia/Russia price war and the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. On this episode we discuss the possible motivations behind why Russia and Saudi Arabia are threatening to ramp up their production and start a price war now, especially in the face of a already high degree of uncertainty for oil demand from the spreading Coronavirus. We cover the serious implicati...

How is the Coronavirus impacting the markets? Did the protests across Canada in opposition to the Coastal GasLink pipeline surprise you? Does climate change risk impact investment strategy?  These are just some of the questions we asked Kevin Uebelein, Chief Executive Officer at Alberta Investment Management Corporation(AIMCO). AIMCO is one of Canada’s largest and most diversified institutional in...

So you think nuclear power plants are big concrete monoliths? Not so, says Norman JD Sawyer the President and CEO of ARC Nuclear Canada. His company is among a new generation developing small, modular nuclear reactors. Norm explains why, compared to the big reactors in operation today, his technology overcomes many of the issues. For example, smaller reactors are safer and have much less waste. A...

On this week's episode we go back in time to 1959, when the Methane Pioneer carried the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) between the United States and the United Kingdom. Now, LNG has become the fastest growing energy system in the world. Natural gas is expected to grow 40% or more over the next 20 years. However, there is some uncertainty. Near term, a global glut of LNG has collap...

Blockades have stopped big parts of Canada’s rail network. Around the same time that the protests started, Ottawa ordered trains carrying dangerous goods to cut their speed in half.  This week, we talk about the situation and implications for crude by rail from Western Canada. We also talk about the latest on the Coronavirus and demand for oil and gas. Finally we give an update on Enbridge’s plan...

What can we learn from a 100-year-old utility bill? Can it help us think more clearly about today’s energy issues, like polarized pipeline issues? Find out as we talk about Peter Tertzakian’s Energyphile project, a website that connects our energy past with a greater understanding of the present and future. In this week’s episode Peter talks about Energyphile, his online museum and new book, “The...

This week we interview John Redfern, the President and CEO of Eavor. His company has invented a novel way for harvesting the earth’s geothermal energy based, in part, on their knowledge from drilling oil and gas wells. The solution is called the Eavor-Loop. The technology overcomes many of the issues that have hampered traditional applications. For instance, it is not limited to niche geographies...

Corporations and financiers are making big climate commitments. First, we look at Cenovus Energy’s new net-zero 2050 commitment. The oil sands producer joins a club of other Canadian producers with big reduction targets.  Meanwhile, Microsoft announced the most ambitious corporate reduction goal yet, to be net-negative in a decade and by 2050 to remove all of their historical emissions dating back...

This week we interview Doug Suttles, President and CEO of Encana (soon to be Ovintiv). On January 14, 2020 Encana shareholders voted in favour to change the company’s name and to move corporate headquarters from Calgary to Denver. When the plan was first announced last fall, the decision fueled frustration in Alberta creating a vocal reaction from industry leaders and politicians. Doug explains th...

This podcast reflects on 2019 to consider the big themes from the year. Next we look forward to think about what 2020 could bring. We reference Canadian oil and gas industry revenue and cash flow in this episode, see more information on the final page of our weekly ARC Energy Charts publication. Related to this podcast, see ARC Commentary “ Big Questions for 2020 .” Please review our disclaimer at...

This episode was recorded on December 11th at the Young Women in Energy (YWE) Awards in Calgary.  We began by discussing why recognition and the sense of community for women in energy is important.  Next, we covered some of the pressing issues in energy and the type of leadership and diversity that is required to navigate these challenges. Katie Smith, the Executive Director of YWE joined us to as...

First we talk about the unveiling of the Tesla Cybertruck. Love it or hate it, you have to admit that Elon Musk puts on a good show. Musk takes a page from past pioneers of new ideas. These entrepreneurs recognized some bravado is needed to get people excited about revolutionary new products. Peter Tertzakian’s Energyphile.org project demonstrates this with the audio story of Max Valier, an early...

How long do energy transitions take? What is the potential for natural gas and Canadian LNG in the global energy transition?  What is the perception of Canadian energy internationally?  These are just some of the questions we asked Maria van der Hoeven. Van der Hoeven is a former Dutch politician that headed the International Energy Agency from 2011 to 2015. Under her leadership the IEA expanded i...

Seta Afshordi, Chief Operating Officer at Proton Technologies, says yes!  Seta explains how reactions in the oil reservoir can liberate the hydrogen while keeping the carbon emissions trapped. Hydrogen has long been viewed as a critical fuel in the transition to a low carbon economy due to its flexibility - it can replace natural gas  or be converted into electricity to power everything from wheel...

This week we explain the pitch in Saudi Aramco’s 653 page prospectus and why the Initial Public Offering (IPO) is a big deal.  Also covered in the show are themes from the tsunami of third quarter financial results from oilfield service firms and producers.  Finally, most outlooks for US oil production growth are being revised down, why and what are the implications? Here is a link for the Saudi A...

This year has been a difficult one for Canada’s oil and gas workers, capital spending is down and there are concerns about next year too.  In this episode we follow the Fiscal Pulse of the industry, to understand how money is made and spent, and to diagnose the reasons for less capital investment. In this episode we reference three charts – the ARC Fiscal Pulse, shareholder dividends and buybacks,...

Canadians elected a Liberal minority government on October 21.  On this episode we break down the voting results regionally. Next, we look at the history of past minority governments.  Finally, we review the Liberal’s energy and environment election platform as a guide for what could happen next. See related ARC Commentary “Majority Rules: Unless it is a Minority.” Please review our disclaimer at:...

Imagine if crude oil production and use resulted in low, or even no net greenhouse gas emissions?  This is not a Jetson-style idea, it will soon be a reality in Alberta.  This week we hear from Kevin Jabusch, the CEO of Enhance Energy. His company will inject CO2 into an enhanced oil recovery project using carbon dioxide delivered via the 240 km Alberta Carbon Trunk Line.  Tune into hear about thi...

This week’s podcast gives our take on some significant government and regulatory changes with positive implications for Western Canadian oil and gas markets. Two decisions were made by the Canada Energy Regulator (CER) at the end of September; (1) a change in the policy for operating Western Canada’s dominant regional natural gas gathering system; and(2), the suspension of Enbridge’s commercial pr...

This week we interview David Smethurst who is the Chief Technology Officer for Energy at Hitachi Vantara. His division is headquartered in Silicon Valley, where buzzwords such as ‘big data’, ‘data optimization’, and ‘digital solutions’are more than just water cooler conversation.   Tune in to hear David explain the evolution of digital over the last few years, and describe some specific use cases...

Tune into this weeks episode where we discuss some of the headlines from New York City Climate Week including the speech from Greta Thunberg at the United Nations, and the importance of dealing with hydrocarbon consumption not just supply. And while New York is talking zero emissions, recent Electric Vehicle (EV) sales are starting to slow. We review the latest data, breaking out the sales figures...

The oil markets take for granted that Saudi Arabia’s spare capacity will cover any unplanned outages. The events of the past week have changed that with 5.7 MMB/d of Saudi production shut down abruptly from a drone attack.  We discuss the situation, the potential for further escalation in the region, as well as the possible implications for oil demand and Canadian energy security. We also cover th...