Saskatchewan’s leading a sustainable energy future

If countries are serious about reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, then finding emissions-reduction technology that can be applied across the energy system is a business imperative. The Canadian province of Saskatchewan produces some of the lowest carbon-intensity energy products anywhere in the world.

Energy and Resources Minister Bronwyn Eyre says, “We want to build on Saskatchewan’s energy strength and make our province the most competitive jurisdiction in Canada to invest in CCUS technology and infrastructure. If all oil-producing countries adopted environmental regulations like Saskatchewan’s, greenhouse gas emissions from oil production would shrink by a quarter.”

Saskatchewan is Canada’s second-largest oil producer and third-largest gas producer. In 2021, the province produced approximately 444,000 barrels of oil per day, and the industry contributes significantly to Saskatchewan’s economy, accounting for 15 per cent of total GDP.

“Saskatchewan is a world leader in carbon capture, particularly with enhanced oil recovery (EOR), without which leading environmentalists agree countries can’t achieve Paris Accord Targets,” Eyre adds. “EOR emits 82 per cent fewer emissions than traditional extraction methods.”

In 2021, the Government of Saskatchewan announced a new strategy to promote private sector investment in CCUS. Saskatchewan offers several investment incentive programs for CCUS projects that, combined, can provide over CA$120m in royalty and tax credits to a qualifying project.

The province anticipates that CCUS projects will attract provincial investment of more than CA$2bn and sequester more than 2m tonnes of CO2 annually. The measures are expected to attract investment, create jobs and consolidate Saskatchewan’s position at the leading edge of carbon capture technology.

In 2022, Saskatchewan opened an international trade and investment office in London to facilitate these energy and resources investment opportunities for companies based in the UK and other European countries.

“The Saskatchewan government can and should be recognised for the leadership that they’re prepared to take,” says Grant Fagerheim, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Whitecap Resources.

Whitecap Resources operates the world’s largest carbon capture project for EOR at the Saskatchewan city of Weyburn. The firm buys waste carbon dioxide produced from a nearby power station and injects the gas at high pressure into an oilfield 1,500 metres below the surface. After squeezing out otherwise unrecoverable oil from pores in the rock, the greenhouse gas remains trapped underground.

“We’re excited to work with the province of Saskatchewan on this project,” Fagerheim says. “We believe this will be the pathway to a low carbon economy.”

Saskatchewan is also one of the world’s leading producers of uranium, a green energy fuel that is used to produce safe, reliable, clean-air electricity. Saskatchewan’s uranium production is based in the northern part of the province, which contains the largest high-grade uranium deposits found anywhere in the world and has significant potential for the discovery of additional deposits. All uranium produced in Canada comes from Saskatchewan mines and is used exclusively for the generation of electricity from nuclear power, a low-carbon energy source that many experts say must be embraced if the world is to meet its greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.

Saskatchewan is also committed to exploring the development of small modular reactors (SMRs) to support economic growth and to meet the challenges of climate change. In 2021, Saskatchewan signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Canadian provinces of Ontario, Alberta and New Brunswick to collaborate on advancing SMR technology. SMRs offer scalable, carbon-free, base-load generation with faster construction times and lower capital costs than larger conventional nuclear power reactors.