38 BCBusiness December 2014
CANADA'S PIPELINE DIALOGUE
by Justine Hunter
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illustration by MicHael byers
A
RoCKIES
RELATIONSHIP
Alberta needs B.C. to get its oil to
Asian markets, but B.C. doesn't really
need Alberta for much of anything.
Or does it? Evaluating the politics
of pipelines, and the often fraught
relationship between Western
Canada's powerhouse provinces
E
arly in her tenure as
British Columbia's 35th premier, Christy
Clark set in motion a plan to grow her
province's national clout by unlocking the
West's energy resources. Along with her
counterparts in Alberta and Saskatchewan,
Clark unveiled plans to establish B.C. as an
"energy powerhouse"—the gateway for Canadian products
to reach lucrative Asian markets.
"The Western provinces have a real chance to step up
in Confederation," Clark explained to The Globe and Mail in
December 2011 as she prepared for the joint lobbying mis-
sion to Ottawa. She wanted to help shape a future where
the West would use its wealth of natural resources—not
just B.C.'s gas and coal but Alberta's oil—for the benefit of
a stronger Canada: "We recognize the big contribution
that the oil sands make to Canada and to our national
economy." Port access to B.C. tidal waters would hold the
key—the gateway to Asian markets, especially land-locked
oil that's captive to capricious U.S. markets.
