Centre Calls for Regional Energy Cooperation

As president of the Atlantica Centre for Energy, Tim Curry has spent plenty of time considering the energy sector in New Brunswick.

So it's natural that he's representing the industry association on an interim task force established in July to harness the potential of the so-called energy hub.

In this conversation, Curry says New Brunswick already has many advantages in the energy sector but should pursue more opportunities for regional co-operation.

Q: What does the energy hub mean to members of your organization?

A: The members of the Atlantica Centre have demonstrated an interest and an investment in the evolution of the energy sector in this province and throughout the region. Most have invested directly in the energy sector in the province of New Brunswick - whether that's through steel and gear in the ground or through developing a professional practice around the energy sector as some of the engineering and consulting firms have done, they have people and money invested in the growth of this sector of the province.

Q: What kind of opportunities do you see for the energy sector?

A: How long you got?

We have probably one of the more diverse energy regimes in Canada if not in North America. We have significant experience and involvement with natural gas, petroleum, nuclear energy, hydro-electric power, thermal-generated power (although that's declining), renewable energy, a wind regime, the potential for harvesting tidal energy, and we have biomass installations in the province that are generating energy.

So diversity within a relatively small footprint is one key advantage that we can seize upon. We're centrally located within the Eastern provinces of Canada and we're proximate to one of the largest energy markets in the world - the northeastern U.S. And we have a track record of working with our neighbours in the region. Although, certainly, our centre has been quite public recently about encouraging more of that co-operation. But it's not as if we're starting from a standing start.

We're strategically located with ice-free deep-water harbours on the Atlantic basin, so long as we're moving physical resources around the world - whether it's natural gas in liquefied form, petroleum products or wood products - we do have that logistical advantage.

And we have a concentration of firms that are active and willing investors in the energy sector. We have an increasing focus on training and educating our young people to participate in that sector.

If some people who are relatively newer to the energy mix in the province are correct, we may be sitting on a much more significant indigenous natural gas resource than we imagined. With firms like Corridor, Apache Canada, Southwestern Energy and others putting significant investment into that exploration, that represents potential. And we'll see if they're right.

We still have the largest oil refinery in Canada right on our doorstep... And the local ownership appears to be still pretty committed to continuing to work that resource in the region.

We have Canada's only liquefied natural gas receiving and regassification terminal. We have pipeline connection to domestic and neighbouring markets.

There's a critical mass of investment already in the ground. There's expertise, there's people, there are willing and active investors and it's a big part of our economy.

Q: What do you see as challenges for the energy sector going forward?

A: I think we have to be better at working collaboratively within our region.

Although we do have a critical mass in some areas, in other areas, our size works against us. And I think that we have to get better at being a little less parochial and a little more open to real interdependence and collaboration within the region.

We Maritimers are a pretty independent lot, but we're all Canadians and we're all trying to work to grow the opportunities within our region and continue to build our economy.

We have to be smarter about how we work together and create mutual interdependency and reduce some of the potential duplication that we have.

The other thing we would encourage governments to do is look hard at how to be more efficient and receptive to investment - in terms of the very necessary job that government has to regulate and ensure that energy projects are being done responsibly and with due regard for public safety and the environment and human health. It would appear there are opportunities to streamline these operations and reduce duplication - I think it would in fact save government money. And we've encouraged governments as part of their part in growing the energy hub to look at opportunities to do those kinds of things.

Second in a series of conversations with members of the energy hub task force.

Story by: Christine Dobby

The Saint John Telegraph Journal

August 17, 2010