Europe’s challenge is Manitoba’s opportunity

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/07/2022 (1559 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If only our leaders at the time had paid more attention to what Jim Collinson was saying eight years ago. If they had, Manitoba, Alberta and western Europe would be in a much different position than they are today.

Collinson is an energy expert with a deep knowledge of the workings of Manitoba Hydro. In 2014, he authored an op-ed published in this newspaper (“Reimaging Manitoba energy,” March 29, 2014), in which he predicted the energy supply problems much of the world is currently experiencing and suggested measures to prevent them from occurring.

That piece is still available on the Free Press website and is well worth reading.

In it, Collinson wrote that “During Putin’s first reign as ‘czar,’ he threatened Ukraine with cutting energy supplies. With his takeover of Crimea, he once again might use energy supply and price to leverage concessions from other EU countries dependent on Russian sources.”

He added that “[i]f supply of Russian energy, particularly natural gas, were cut off (or faces significant price increases as is happening), parts of Europe would suffer. Russia is already increasing shipments to China and raising prices to Ukraine.”

Like many of us, Collinson saw the threat Vladimir Putin posed to world peace and prosperity and, in particular, the leverage the former KGB agent had over western Europe because of that region’s growing dependence on Russian oil and gas.

Like few at the time, however, Collinson had a viable plan to limit that leverage and vulnerability.

He wrote that “Canada and the United States have increasing and abundant natural gas supplies they could export.… LNG (liquefied natural gas) could be shipped from the Bakken formation in the southwest corner of Manitoba to Europe via Churchill. The same applies to hydrogen, which is easily extracted from water by electrolysis. Hydrogen could be produced at a dam on the Nelson (River).”

“Manitoba is well-positioned to enter the global energy supply chain,” he added. “There is latent capacity on the Nelson River, water is in abundant supply, the rail line exists and the Churchill port can easily be modified to accommodate LNG and hydrogen-carrying ships.”

He ended by saying that “Manitoba would have a reliable market for its northern electricity and natural gas. Processing would add value, not require new transmission lines and avoid price and demand volatility in U.S. markets beyond the short term. Neither product would represent a threat to land and water ecosystems en route to Europe.”

Collinson’s plan made sense in 2014; it makes even more sense now. Just imagine the economic growth and prosperity northern Manitoba, Churchill in particular, would be experiencing today if the investments had been made at that time. The entire region would be booming.

That said, the opportunity still exists, and it has found an ally in Alberta.

Danielle Smith is a front-runner in the contest to become leader of Alberta’s governing United Conservative Party. If she wins, she will immediately become premier of that province.

During an interview last week, Smith told the Globe and Mail that, under her leadership as premier, Alberta would work with First Nations to negotiate “economic corridors” to ports such as Churchill, giving her province access to shipping lanes out of Hudson Bay. “Let’s get a couple of LNG icebreakers and start moving,” she said. “These are the kinds of things we need to do.”

That should be music to the ears of northern First Nations, northern Manitobans and, most of all, the Manitoba government.

The plan Smith is proposing would result in hundreds of millions of dollars in investment (maybe more), creating thousands of jobs throughout the North. It would transform Churchill into a viable, year-round pathway to Europe for products and commodities from all over North America.

It would be an economic game-changer for every corner of this province, creating new tax revenue streams for the province and income for Manitoba companies and their employees. Most of all, it would dramatically improve the lives of northern Manitobans, who have endured countless boom-and-bust cycles.

Collinson was right in 2014, but few of us shared his sense of urgency. We do now, though.

Western Europe needs a reliable supply of natural gas and other products and commodities. It needs Manitoba to be that supplier.

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