Investors souring on fossil fuels

Deputy premier Jason Nixon was quick to offer clarifications for remarks made by Energy Minister Sonya Savage, saying that “Minister Savage is not saying the Alberta government in any way would prevent someone from legally protesting.”

What she did say, however, is that the social restrictions of our response to COVID-19 are darned convenient for pushing forward contentious infrastructure projects, specifically pipelines. Ramming through new pipelines is not only contentious but also short-sighted and risky.

In the early days of the Covid-induced cuts in oil demand, MSNBC commentator Jim Cramer said that a “death knell” had sounded for fossil fuels and that he “didn’t think he could help you make money in oil and gas stocks anymore.” More recently, the Norway pension investment fund loudly announced they would no longer invest in four of our large oilsands companies. And the Bank of Canada is moving toward more stringent requirements that companies looking for securities and investors must examine and release assessments of the risks posed by climate change to their infrastructure, operations, and their bottom line.

Roger Gagne, Calgary