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Decision on Teck oilsands mine coming next week

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The prime minister’s point man for the Prairies said today the fate of the proposed Teck Frontier oilsands mine will be decided next week, setting the table for another potential showdown over an oil and gas project in this country.

Liberal MP Jim Carr said the nearly $21-billion project represents a complex challenge for the federal government, one that demands a balance between the interests of Alberta — which sees the project’s thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in revenue as critical to the province’s future — and environmentalists who insist that approving the project would make a mockery of the Trudeau government’s international commitments on climate change.

“I believe that when the decision is made, the arguments will be advanced why it is in the public interest and the national interest,” Carr said in an interview airing Saturday on CBC Radio’s The House. “And always and ultimately, Canadians will decide if they agree.”

 

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Map showing the location of the Ronald Lake Bison Range in relation to the Teck Resources Oilsands Frontier mine. (CBC News Graphics)

 

Carr insisted he was not signalling that cabinet is ready to approve the project, although he acknowledged that the decision the government announces in the coming days — whatever it is — will be a tough sell.

“It’s complex. It’s full of issues that are important to Alberta and the country,” he said. “As always, there are the balances and trade-offs and the consideration of environmental stewardship while living up to international obligations.”

Canada has committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 — a target that Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith insists will remain out of reach if Teck Frontier is approved.

‘A pretty easy ‘no’ — Erskine-Smith

There is no clear picture of how this project, which lasts until 2067, fits within our net-zero commitment,” Erskine-Smith said in a separate interview with The House. “When you look at this project, when you look at the climate commitments specifically, I think it’s a pretty easy ‘no’.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been warned already about the political risks of killing the project. Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has lobbied hard for its approval, warning Trudeau that a rejection could give a boost to separatist sentiments in the province.

“Here in Alberta, it would interpreted as a rejection of our most important industry and it could raise roiling western alienation to a boiling point — something I know your government has been attentive to since the election,” Kenney wrote in a Feb. 5 letter to Trudeau.

“The rejection would send a signal to the international investment community that Canada’s regulatory system is arbitrary, subject to moving and invisible goal posts and that even the best evidence can be trumped by narrow politics.”

 

Supporters and opponents of an oilsands mine proposed by Teck Resources rally outside the Calgary company’s offices Jan. 22, 2020. (Julie Prejet/Radio-Canada)

 

The Frontier mine has received regulatory approval already, even though the review panel concluded there would significant adverse environmental affects.

This week, federal Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson wrote to his Alberta counterpart urging him to introduce regulations to enforce a 100-megatonne cap on greenhouse gas emissions from the oilsands introduced by the province’s previous NDP government.

Adding to the stakes was a warning issued by Teck Resources on Friday that it would take a writedown of more than $1 billion if Frontier is rejected.

Carr said that’s just another factor to consider.

“You know that’s their point of view. There are lots of points of view,” he told CBC News. “The one point of view that will determine the fate of the project is the government’s assessment of Canada’s interest.”

Erskine-Smith said he doesn’t believe the project is profitable at current prices for oil — or that the Liberals would escape unscathed politically if cabinet approves it.

“In terms of political backlash I think there will be great concern in my community that we are not taking our climate change obligations seriously,” he said.

“We have obligations to the work, to future generations, and we have to do our part in tackling climate change.”

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Former crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison – Al Jazeera English

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Bankman-Fried, 32, sentenced for fraud on customers of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange he founded.

Former crypto tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to 25 years in United States federal prison for stealing $8bn from customers of the now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange he founded.

US District Judge Lewis Kaplan handed down the sentence at a Manhattan court hearing on Thursday after rejecting Bankman-Fried’s claim that FTX customers did not actually lose money and accusing him of lying during his trial testimony.

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A jury found Bankman-Fried, 32, guilty on November 2 on seven fraud and conspiracy counts stemming from FTX’s 2022 collapse in what prosecutors have called one of the biggest financial frauds in US history.

“He knew it was wrong,” Kaplan said of Bankman-Fried before handing down the sentence. “He knew it was criminal. He regrets that he made a very bad bet about the likelihood of getting caught. But he is not going to admit a thing, as is his right.”

Bankman-Fried stood with his hands clasped before him as Kaplan read the sentence.

Kaplan said the sentence reflected “that there is a risk that this man will be in position to do something very bad in the future. And it’s not a trivial risk at all.”

Prior to sentencing, Bankman-Fried stood and apologised. “A lot of people feel really let down. And they were very let down. And I’m sorry about that. I’m sorry about what happened at every stage,” he said.

“My useful life is probably over. It’s been over for a while now, from before my arrest.”

Sam Bankman Fried
Sam Bankman-Fried, centre left, is escorted out of Magistrate Court following a hearing in Nassau, Bahamas, Dec. 19, 2022 [File: Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo]

Al Jazeera’s Kristen Saloomey, reporting from New York, said that Bankman-Fried could have received up to 110 years behind bars for his crimes and that the 25-year sentence was less than the 40-50 years that prosecutors were seeking.

“Given the scale of this crime, one of the largest frauds in history, the judge took a very strong stance but also showed some flexibility… perhaps based on the arguments made by Bankman-Fried’s lawyers and his family that he had always intended to do good”, she said.

Bankman-Fried had billed himself as a proponent of effective altruism – finding the best way to help other people, in particular by donating all or part of one’s wealth to charity rather than, say, volunteering at a soup kitchen.

When the cryptocurrency world lurched into crisis in the spring of 2022, he bought shares in the troubled platform BlockFi and another troubled company, Voyager.

However, prosecutors have said the responsible image he cultivated concealed his years-long embezzlement of customer funds.

“The defendant victimised tens of thousands of people and companies, across several continents, over a period of multiple years. He stole money from customers who entrusted it to him” prosecutors said in a court filing.

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Gas prices in the Thompson Okanagan jumped by 7 cents a litre, days before the next carbon tax increase – Vernon News – Castanet.net

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Some area gas stations are not waiting until April 1 to crank up the price of gas.

On April Fools Day, the federal Liberals will be increasing the controversial carbon tax, which will directly impact the price at the pump.

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However, overnight, several Thompson Okanagan gas stations have already increased the price, selling the liquid gold for 174.9.

In January, gas was selling for a ‘mere’ 143.9 cents a litre. The latest hike is a whopping 31-cent-a-litre increase in just three months.

And the price of petrol is guaranteed to go up again when the carbon tax increase is implemented on Monday.

Kelowna drivers are also paying more at the pump today, with the majority of stations raising the price to 174.9.

As of 9:30 Thursday morning, the Co-op stations on Rutland and Sexsmith roads were at 168.9 as was the Costco gas station.

Several Vernon stations are holding at 167.9.

In Penticton, motorists are also paying more, with the price at the majority of stations hitting the 174.9 mark.

Kamloops drivers are also taking a hit to the wallet with gas in the Thompson community also selling for 174.9.

The Kamloops Costco was the cheapest in the city at 161.9 cents a litre.

Enderby continues to have some of the cheapest gas in the region at 165.9, however the Esso in Tappen has them all beat at 157.9.

Gas in Vancouver has crested the $2 a litre mark, sitting at 202.9 cents a litre.

And as usual, Calgary motorists are paying significantly less than their BC counterparts, filling up for 154.9 cents a litre.

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Calgary breaks all-time record in housing starts but increasing demand keeps inventory low – CBC.ca

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Soaring housing demands in Calgary led to an all-time record for new residential builds last year, but inventory levels of completed and unsold units remained low due to demand outpacing supply.

According to the latest report from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), total housing starts increased by 13 per cent in Calgary, reaching a total of 19,579 units with growth across all dwelling types in the city.

That compares to a decline of 0.5 per cent overall for housing starts in the six major Canadian cities surveyed by CMHC.

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Calgary also had the highest housing starts by population.

“Part of the reason why we think that might have happened is that developers are responding to low vacancies in the rental market,” said Adebola Omosola, a housing economics specialist with CMHC.

“The population of Calgary is still growing, a record number of people moved here last year, and we still expect that to remain at least in the short term.”

Earlier this year, the Calgary Real Estate Board also predicted that demand, especially for rental apartments, wouldn’t let up any time soon. 

Industry can cope with demand, expert says

According to numbers from the report, average construction times were higher in 2023 for all dwelling types except for apartments.

The agency’s report suggests the increase in the number of under-construction residential projects might mean builders are operating at or near full capacity.

However, there’s optimism the construction industry can match the increasing need.

Brian Hahn, CEO of BILD Calgary Region, said despite concerns around about construction costs, project timelines and labour shortages, the industry has kept up with the demand for new builds.

Demand is expected to remain robust, but the construction industry can keep up, according to BILD Calgary region CEO Brian Hahn.
Demand is expected to remain robust, but the construction industry can keep up, according to BILD Calgary Region chief executive officer Brian Hahn. (Shaun Best/Reuters)

“I’ve heard that kind of conversation at the end of 2022 and I heard it in 2023,” Hahn said.

“Yet here we are early in 2024, and January and February were record numbers again.”

Hahn added he believes the current pace of construction will continue for at least the next six months and that the industry is looking at initiatives to attract more people to the trades.

Increase in row house and apartment construction

Construction growth was largely driven by new apartment projects, making up almost half of the housing starts in Calgary in 2023.

The federal housing agency says 9,034 apartment units were started that year, an increase of 17 per cent from the previous year. Of those, about 54 per cent were purpose-built rentals.

Apartments made up around two-thirds of all units under construction, CMHC said, with the total number of units under construction reaching 23,473.

Growth, however, was seen across all dwelling types. Row homes increased by 34 per cent from the previous year while groundbreaking on single-detached homes grew by two per cent.

“Notwithstanding challenges, our members and the industry counterparts that support them managed to produce a record amount of starts and completions,” Hahn said.

“I have little doubt that the industry will do their very best to keep pace at those levels.”

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