John Ivison: Carney pipeline boosting hasn't yet convinced investors that Canada has changed - National Post
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith listens to Prime Minister Mark Carney speak during an announcement that the Pacific Link pipeline has been listed as a project of national interest, in Fort McMurray, Alta., on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. Photo by Itoro Umanah/Fort McMurray Today/PostmediaArticle contentMark Carney spoke to two distinct audiences in Fort McMurray, Alta., on Thursday, where he announced that the proposed West Coast oil pipeline — now known as Pacific Link — has been officially listed as a project of national interest.
The first was the people of Alberta, who will be asked on Oct. 19 to vote on whether the province should remain in Canada, or whether it should negotiate to hold a binding referendum on independence.
The prime minister said that the confirmation that the project has Ottawa’s support and will now move into the formal consultation phase “demonstrates the power of Canada.”
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He said the pipeline presents a generational opportunity to become one of the world’s trusted oil suppliers.
The prospect of exporting an additional one million barrels a day to Asia would help reduce a price differential on U.S. exports that the Alberta government estimates has cost the Canadian oil sector US$49 billion since 2010.
Premier Danielle Smith credited Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau, with creating the demand for independence with his “litany of bad laws.”
She said the brand of co-operative federalism that Carney has practised has persuaded her that Canada can work. “The government of Canada genuinely wants to identify problems and genuinely wants to solve them,” she said, confirming that she will vote for Alberta to remain in Canada.
There has been little change in provincial support for independence in recent months, which remains mired at around 22 per cent.
But the sight of the country’s prime minister in the heart of the oilpatch may sway the small number of undecided voters, particularly those who have been convinced that he is intent on killing the industry.
“Oil demand will be significant for decades to come, even under any plausible net-zero scenarios,” Carney said. “The question is: who will emerge as the world’s most trusted suppliers? It must be Canada.”
