Canada launched its new Major Projects Office (MPO) today, part of prime minister Mark Carney's effort to help the country pivot away from over-dependence on the US for trade and fast-track infrastructure projects.
The office, which will be based in the oil and gas hub of Calgary, Alberta, has a mandate to both streamline and accelerate regulatory approval processes, acting as a single point of contact in an effort to get "nation-building projects built faster," Carney said.
The office will consider projects named to a special, but yet-to-be-unveiled, "National Interest Projects" list, which will be able to avoid certain regulatory hurdles that have discouraged applications in the past. They will include ports, railways, energy corridors, critical mineral developments and clean energy initiatives, according to the government.
Former Trans Mountain chief executive Dawn Farrell will oversee the office. She held the top role at the federally-owned pipeline company for two years ending in August 2024, overseeing the C$34bn ($25bn) 590,000 b/d Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) project, which had been mired in regulatory red tape for years.
"The government will announce the first set of nation-building projects in the coming weeks," said Carney.
The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers estimates that the oil and gas industry has about more than C$100bn worth of projects planned or waiting for a final investment decision.
The office is a product of Bill C-5, passed by Parliament in June in response to the trade hostilities started by the US administration under President Trump. Carney this spring campaigned on providing Canadians with both an answer to Trump's rhetoric and to kickstart a lagging economy that has been stifled by unfriendly policies for investors.
Having the office headquartered in Calgary, but with offices also in other major Canadian cities, represents an olive branch to Alberta that is frequently at odds with the federal government. The province has demanded changes to onerous federal policies, mostly relating to energy, warning Carney that a national unity crisis could unfold otherwise.
Energy has arguably been Canada's largest bargaining chip in the ongoing trade war with the US, but Carney has so far has so far refused to remove restrictive policies inherited from his predecessor Justin Trudeau, despite calls from industry to scrap them. This includes the oil tanker ban on British Columbia's north coast, an industrial carbon tax, and an emissions cap on oil and gas producers that they say amounts to a cap on production.
