Trade deal could have been worse for Alberta oil sector, Bilous says
The new North American trade agreement contains two minor wins for Alberta’s energy sector.
In short, it could have been worse, provincial Trade Minister Deron Bilous said Monday.
Talk of increased oil tariffs and taxes may have been bandied about during negotiations, but a small change to rules on heavy-oil shipping will see around $60 million in savings for Alberta energy companies.
Also struck from the United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) — in essence, the new NAFTA — is a line that guaranteed a certain amount of oil would be shipped to the U.S. from Canada.
Bilous said the removal of that clause shows our southern neighbours are no longer worried about market access.
“When you look at some of the potential alternatives and what could have happened — potential barriers to trade or tariffs in our energy sector — that would have had monumental impacts on Alberta and all of Canada,” he said Monday afternoon in Edmonton.
But, he said, that doesn’t mean the Alberta government will stop pushing for access to new markets via the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.
Bilous sees a number of positives in the modernized trade agreement, especially for Alberta.
Alongside small changes for energy, the new deal retains Chapter 19 — a tool Canada has long used in softwood lumber disputes with the U.S.
“This was one of the largest things the forestry sector wanted to see in this modernized agreement, and we made sure the federal government heard loud and clear what Alberta producers were looking for,” Bilous said.
For the time being, former Canadian ambassador Gary Doer will remain in the United States lobbying for Alberta’s softwood industry, which employs around 19,000 people.
But Alberta dairy farmers are not impressed with the deal, which will see American farmers gain greater access to Canada’s dairy industry.
“It’s a dark day ” for the province’s 516 dairy farmers, the group said in a release, adding “dairy farmers have once again been sacrificed” in trade negotiations.
“We are extremely disappointed,” said Alberta Milk chairman Tom Kootstra, calling the deal “death by a thousand cuts.”