Wanted: Youth Army to Defend Canada's Gas

 LNG Canada, which reached final investment decision on its British Columbia export project in late 2018, is expected to add between 3mn and 4mn metric tons/yr of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to Canada’s total. But it is also expected to cut between 60mn and 90mn mt/yr of GHG emissions in China by displacing carbon-intensive coal-fired power generation.

Unfortunately, environmental opponents of fossil fuel development appear indifferent to these numbers and continue to fight Canadian energy projects.

"This is the global perspective that we need to take around what we are doing,” said Tracy Robinson, executive vice president, president Canadian Natural Gas Pipelines, TC Energy Corporation (formerly TransCanada Corporation), addressing a Young Professionals in Energy audience on May 27 in Calgary.

She urged the room of 25 to 35-year-olds to do a better job of talking about Canada’s responsible energy development and the need for Canadian LNG exports.

“We’re getting better at telling stories about what we’re doing right but the problem is, [the people telling these stories] all look like me. They’ve been around a little too long. They’re not as nimble as the next generation. So we need you folks out there delivering the message,” she said.

Increasingly, Canadian oil and gas associations and media channels have taken up the challenge of proactively countering the anti-fossil fuel public sentiment that has crippled timely energy infrastructure development in Canada over the last decade.

The new Alberta premier, Jason Kenney, has also promised to create a well-funded "energy war room," a campaign to target groups and individuals who spread what he calls "myths and lies" about the province's energy sector.

But Robinson warned that messages from head offices and grey-haired politicians aren’t going to be enough to sway public opinion. At a time when opposition to oil and gas development seems to be the default position of youth, the upcoming generation of energy workers needs to step up and confront the mistaken belief that the world can easily switch to renewable energy in short order.

“What we need is our army to match their army. If every single one of us is out there with the stories, the messages, the beliefs and the passion that this is the right thing to do, then we will [win]. But if we sit there and watch it go by, we will not,” Robinson said.

Building on her theme of how the Canadian oil and gas industry has changed – specifically the emergence of multiple, vocal stakeholder interests countering energy development – and what it will take for the new generation of energy workers to succeed, Robinson outlined her five principles for effective leadership to which the audience might aspire.

1. Character and courage: “I’ve come to believe that the number one thing is who you are. It takes a level of character and courage to lead. You know them when you see them – those people who have that true depth of character and who stands for something.”
2. Think differently: “They’re not consumed by problems. Effective leaders lift about those problems… Most importantly, these leaders create simple objectives, simple visions. The power of the leader is to simplify, not to make things more complex.”
3. Influence and inspire: “Your authority doesn’t come from the chair you sit in. [Effective] leaders lead from passion and character and what they believe in.”
4. Take action: “What you say is very important but what you do is more important. You understand your strengths and surround yourself with people who can offset the things you’re not so good at. You focus on the right things.”
5. Deliver results: “You need to consistently achieve results, to advance the cause.”

Citing Yao Li, CEO of Chinese energy consulting firm SIA Energy, who spoke of China’s “almost infinite” demand for LNG at the annual Canada Gas and LNG Conference in Vancouver in May – Li estimated China's demand for LNG imports will rise from less than 40mn mt/yr to 90mn mt/yr by 2030 – Robinson fielded an audience question of whether Canada may have missed the window of opportunity in the second wave of LNG export capacity expansion.

“I think there is a risk that we are missing the boat,” she said.

Currently, 26 of the 33 LNG export licences issued by Canada’s National Energy Regulator remain in place, but only one major project on the coast of British Columbia has reached a positive final investment decision: LNG Canada.

“The good thing is that LNG Canada has shown that it’s possible. So now you have more companies coming back to look at this opportunity. We believe, we hope, that the economic conditions are there for more projects to move ahead. But it is not easy,” Robinson said.