Premier Danielle Smith has directed her energy minister to boost oil production and move pipeline projects forward.
Smith told Energy Minister Brian Jean in an Oct. 2 mandate letter that she expected him to defend the province’s energy and natural resources sector “against federal overreach,” and develop “strategic alliances” with other provinces.
The minister was also directed to advance pipeline projects, including secure approval for a bitumen pipeline to B.C.’s northwest coast, and other pipeline projects to the United States, Ontario, Hudson Bay, and the Arctic. Smith’s letter also directed Jean to increase oil production to six million barrels a day by 2030, and eight million barrels per day by 2035….