Seen from the sky, the Ivanpah Solar Power Facility in California’s Mojave Desert resembles a futuristic dream.
Viewed from the bottom line, however, Ivanpah is anything but.
The solar power plant, which features three 459-foot towers and thousands of computer-controlled mirrors known as heliostats, cost some $2.2 billion to build.
Canada and other major fossil fuel-producing countries are derailing the world’s chance to hit key climate change targets, a new international report suggests, with 2030 production levels expected to be more than double what would be compatible with the Paris agreement.
While some countries have committed to a clean energy transition, others appear to be turning back to “an outdated fossil-fuel dependent playbook,” the report said.
“The continued collective failure of governments to curb fossil fuel production and lower global emissions means that future production will need to decline more steeply to compensate,” states the Production Gap Report, which was produced by three climate research non-profits.
I could care less what a few cranks think.
Federal and provincial taxpayers are stuck between a rock and a hard place when it comes to the future of electric vehicle production in Canada.
At stake is the future of up to $52.5 billion the federal, Ontario and Quebec governments have earmarked since 2020 to create an EV vehicle and battery supply chain in Canada from scratch — $31.4 billion or 60% coming from the feds, $21.1 billion or 40% from the provinces.
OTTAWA — Canadian automakers are warning they could be on the hook for billions of dollars in credit purchases if Canada’s electric vehicle mandate is enforced as written, and sales don’t ramp up.
Automakers already have deals lined up with companies like Tesla to buy credits to close expected gaps between sales and the targets set by the EV mandate. That could end up costing the industry more than $3 billion by 2030, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association president Brian Kingston told the House of Commons international trade committee on Thursday.
And so it begins. Environmentalists and Indigenous groups have launched the first protests and legal actions threatening conventional energy production since Mark Carney became prime minister.
A few small protests have been held in Ontario and Quebec and a lawsuit was filed by nine First Nations this summer in response to Bill C-5 (the Building Canada Act). And environmentalists have filed suit for an injunction to reverse the Government of Saskatchewan’s decision to operate its coal-fired electrical power stations beyond the federal government’s 2030 shutdown deadline.
The Trudeau government paid $45,076 for in-house polling that found most Canadians don’t care about Ottawa’s attempt to brand plastics as toxic.
According to the Department of Environment survey, 51% of Canadians are “neutral consumers” who have no strong views on the issue.
When your puppy makes a mess on the carpet, you don’t sit around for 60 days consulting. It’s a rapid reaction situation.
Remove the “deposit.” Apply soapy water. Move on and play fetch.
There are parallels between politics and puppies.
Former prime minister Justin Trudeau left a huge mess for Prime Minister Mark Carney to clean up.
Ram has abandoned plans to launch an electric pickup truck, according to a Sept. 12 statement from Stellantis.
“As demand for full-size battery-electric trucks slows in North America, Stellantis is reassessing its product strategy and will discontinue development of a full-size [battery-electric] pickup,” the company said.
In December 2024, the company said it planned on launching its Ram 1500 battery-electric pickup in the first half of 2025.
Whether he’s pressuring Ukraine for backpay or speculating about Greenland’s riches, when Donald Trump mentions critical minerals, he’s ultimately concerned with one thing and one thing only: defence.
According to the United States Geological Survey’s (USGS) definition of a “critical mineral,” that makes perfect sense. In concert with the USGS, the US government is clearly focused on how vulnerable supply chains of critical minerals affect their national security.
Canada’s economy is sputtering and it will continue to under Liberal rule. Carney’s administration is as economically reckless as Trudeau’s was and for the same reason. Carney’s net-zero obsession is overwhelming his pragmatism when it comes to policy reforms. He can’t allow himself to support any policy that may clash with his green vision for the world thus he dithers and offers double-speak while industries continue to decline.
(Incognito)
Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government has promised to make Canada the world’s leading “energy superpower,” but so far, the government has failed to reduce regulatory hurdles and uncertainty in energy development. It’s time to reverse the damaging federal policies that have held back Canada’s energy industry for more than a decade.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has the opportunity to craft a climate policy that makes sense to Canadian taxpayers – versus the political insanity of the Justin Trudeau era – but the question is whether he is ultimately a pragmatist or an ideologue.
Prior to becoming PM, Carney was definitely an ideologue on climate change.
I don’t trust Carney.
The man credited with remaking the smartphone industry with Blackberry in the early 2000s says Ottawa’s decision to give tens of billions of dollars in subsidies to foreign companies like Volkswagen to build battery cell manufacturing plants in Canada was a “catastrophically disastrous move.”
Jim Balsillie, the former chair of Research in Motion and more recently the co-founder of the Council of Canadian Innovators, told National Post’s John Ivison that he thinks Canada’s approach to trade and competitiveness is outdated and ignores the fact that in the knowledge economy, prosperity flows from ownership of intellectual property.
Canadian construction and union leaders say they’re frustrated over the continued use of foreign workers for non-specialized tasks at the massive NextStar electric vehicle battery plant project in Windsor, Ont., that’s receiving billions of dollars in taxpayer support.
They also say they’ve been disappointed in the response they’ve received from all levels of government when they’ve raised concerns.
“I personally have sat with many ministers federally, provincially, right to the top. And it’s not a secret,” says Jason Roe, the business manager for Local 700 of the Ironworkers union. “People know that it’s been going on.”
Schools across Quebec have been forced to cancel bus service after the government pulled all of the roughly 1,200 Lion electric buses in the province off the roads.
The provincial government said it took the precautionary measure after a Lion electric school bus caught fire in Montreal earlier this week. Several children and a driver were inside the bus when it caught fire but no one was injured.
