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Market Chatter: Alberta Coast Pipeline Would Need Over $72 Billion in Investment, Imperial Oil CEO Says

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Canada's oil industry will need to attract over CA$100 billion ($72.5 billion) in investment to support Alberta's proposed 1 million-barrel-per-day pipeline to the British Columbia coast, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing Imperial Oil Chief Executive John Whelan.

Speaking at the Energy Roundtable conference in Calgary, Whelan reportedly said the industry would need to invest in expanding oil production to supply the new pipeline, secure shipping commitments and help fund a federally mandated carbon capture project.

"The total cost is north of a hundred billion [Canadian] dollars that we will need to attract to this industry," Whelan said. "Now I think we can do that, but that's kind of scale of what we're talking about."

Imperial Oil did not immediately respond to a request for comment from.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has proposed the new West Coast pipeline as part of a broader plan to eventually double the province's oil production.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said Ottawa would support the project in exchange for measures, including a higher industrial carbon tax and the development of the long-delayed Pathways carbon capture and storage project, aimed at reducing emissions from Canada's oil sands industry.

The Alberta government plans to unveil additional details on the project, including the proposed route to the coast, by July and aims to secure federal approval by October.

The province's preferred northwestern route is expected to face opposition from Indigenous groups in BC and from BC Premier David Eby. The project could also require the federal government to lift a moratorium on oil tankers along BC's northern coast, a step Smith has reportedly advocated.

Construction could begin as early as late next year, according to the Alberta government.

Imperial Oil, majority-owned by Exxon Mobil (XOM), is one of Canada's largest oil sands producers, operating the Kearl mine and the Cold Lake in situ oil sands project in Alberta.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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