The Competition Bureau is investigating whether the tar sands industry lobby, very active with the Trudeau government, is using deceptive marketing practices by claiming that oil development is on the path to “carbon neutrality” . This investigation stems from a complaint filed by Greenpeace Canada, a move supported by former federal environment minister Catherine McKenna.
The initiation of this procedure by the Competition Bureau of Canada was notified to Greenpeace in a letter drafted by the “General Directorate of Cartels and Deceptive Marketing Practices”. The document states that a “formal investigation” has been launched based on provisions of the Competition Act that relate to “misleading representations” to the public. This information was confirmed Thursday at Duty by the Competition Bureau.
The complaint filed in March by Greenpeace targets the New Ways Alliance, which includes Canadian Natural, Cenovus, ConocoPhillips, Imperial, Meg Energy and Suncor. These companies alone account for 95% of oil sands oil production, or nearly three million barrels per day.
Members of the New Paths Alliance have been conducting a public relations campaign for several months to highlight industry efforts to align with the federal government’s 2050 goal of “carbon neutrality.” It’s clear, we are making great strides towards carbon neutrality,” says the title of the advertisement published in various media, on social media and during sporting events.
Companies are focusing on the development of a “network” of carbon capture, use and storage for industry. The development of this technology, which is still at an experimental stage, is a priority for the fossil fuel sector, which sees it as a way to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from oil production.
According to the oil sands industry’s advertising, the expected reduction would be “10 million tonnes annually by 2030”. Canada’s most recent GHG assessment, that of 2021, puts the sector’s emissions at more than 85 million tonnes. These are increasing year after year.
Greenwashing
In its complaint, Greenpeace denounces the industry’s discourse, claiming that it constitutes “a greenwashing tactic”. “We believe that the public deserves to know the truth about the environmental damage caused by the production of fossil fuels, and not to be showered with misleading statements by the industry,” also argued Thursday Nola Poirier, researcher and writer at Greenpeace Canada.
Environmentalists point out in particular that the industry’s carbon neutral plan does not take into account greenhouse gas emissions from the use of oil, which is mainly exported and burned elsewhere in the world. An estimate by the Federal Ministry of the Environment has already indicated that between 2016 and 2020, emissions related to exported oil alone reached 3.22 billion tonnes of GHGs, an annual average of nearly 644 million tonnes.
In a written statement sent to the Duty, the New Ways Alliance defended itself on Thursday from resorting to deceptive commercial practices. Its vice-president of external relations, Mark Cameron, recalls the importance of this industry in the Canadian economy while reaffirming that companies want to tackle the “climate challenge”.
“Our campaign recognizes that the oil sands represent a significant portion of the country’s emissions and that we must work collaboratively, including with governments, to achieve our net zero operations goal to deliver the best barrel of responsibly produced oil. “, he also explained.
An active lobby
This tar sands lobby is very active, according to what emerges from the registry of lobbyists in Canada. For example, its president, Kendall Dilling, has already had 28 “communications” with government officials since the start of the year, including several exchanges with senior people in the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. .
The current Trudeau government had invited the New Paths Alliance to hold an event at the Canadian pavilion at the most recent UN climate conference (COP27). The objective was to allow the industry to present the carbon capture and storage project supposed to enable it to achieve carbon neutrality. The Trudeau government has granted hundreds of millions of dollars in public funds to assess the potential for “commercial viability” of this technology in Canada.
The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers predicts that investment in oil and natural gas production will reach $40 billion this year. This is the third year in a row of investment growth. Those in the oil sands are expected to reach 11.5 billion.