Pathways Alliance to file for regulator approval on carbon capture project

A consortium of Canada's largest oilsands companies said it aims to submit an application before the end of the week for approval of its proposed $16.5-billion carbon capture pipeline project.

Pathways Alliance spokeswoman Jerrica Goodwin confirmed the expected timeline in an email Thursday.

The oilsands group — whose membership consists of Suncor Energy Inc., Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., Cenovus Energy Inc., Imperial Oil Ltd., MEG Energy Corp. and ConocoPhillips Canada — has previously stated that it cannot make a final investment decision for its marquee project until it has the Alberta Energy Regulator's approval in hand.

Once underway, the regulatory process is expected to take at least a year.

But in an interview in November, Pathways president Kendall Dilling said that any filing for regulatory approval should be interpreted as a sign of commitment by the companies to the project.

"I do think it's fair to say that as we submit our regulatory application, and as we proceed with the significant spending through 2024, that should be interpreted as our bona fide commitment to this project and moving it forward," Dilling said at the time.

This week's development is much anticipated; it comes nearly three years after Canada's largest oilsands companies announced they would band together in a joint effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from oilsands production.

The companies are proposing to build a 400-kilometre line that would ultimately transport carbon dioxide emissions from 20 different oilsands production facilities in northern Alberta and embed them safely in an underground storage hub.

Pathways has said the project could help its member companies achieve a 32 per cent reduction from 2019 emissions levels by 2030.

If completed, the Pathways project would be one of the largest carbon capture and storage projects in the world.

It is the centrepiece of the oilsands' industry's pledge to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, something the industry must do if Canada is to meet its international climate commitments.

But Pathways has been criticized for its perceived slowness in getting shovels in the ground. The consortium has spent much of the last three years lobbying for federal and provincial support for its project.

While the federal government has pledged an investment tax credit for carbon capture and storage projects, as well as promised a mechanism to backstop the price of carbon in order to give certainty to companies considering investing in emissions reducing technology, the details of both have yet to be hammered out.

As recently as this month, oilsands executives have publicly stated that the level of government support announced for carbon capture so far in Canada is not enough to make the Pathways project competitive.

"With what we know today ... the government funding partnerships in Canada are not enough for large-scale (carbon capture) to proceed in the oilsands," said Cenovus chief sustainability officer Rhona DelFrari at the company's recent investor day.

"Without competitive fiscal incentives, our country risks being left out as large-scale emissions reduction investments are developed and deployed elsewhere where they get the best returns."