A recent study estimated the tariff could cause Canadian energy exports to the U.S. to decline by as much as 22 per cent
Ex-Alberta premier Jason Kenney told the National Post that Trump’s proposed global 10 per cent tariff on all imports is the big mood killer this time around.
“Everyone is rightly concerned about the tariff,” Kenney said in an interview.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry fired what looked to be a warning shot at Trump in a statement welcoming Smith into the coalition.
“I welcome… the insights (Smith) will bring as the leader from a fellow energy-producing province, that like my state, is under a federal system of government where national imperatives are not always aligned with state or provincial interests,” Landry wrote.
Smith spokesperson Erin Allin told the National Post that she plans to pitch the other Canadian first ministers on the pact.
“(Smith) will be raising the coalition and its mandate at future meetings with her federal and provincial counterparts here in Canada,” Allin told the National Post in an email.
“If the federal government is insistent upon going down that pathway, we’ll take care of our own interests,” said Smith.
“One of the things (Burgum) has realized,” in his former role, “is that getting pipelines built requires coordination across multiple (levels), including especially on federal lands,” said Smith.
Smith say she will be in Washington, D.C. for Trump’s inauguration in January.
Kenney says that Canadian negotiators could still sway Trump by tying continental energy production to overarching security concerns.
Kenney also said he wouldn’t rule out the revival of the derailed Keystone XL pipeline expansion with Trump back in office.
“All the pre-construction work and regulatory permitting has basically already been done,” said Kenney. “It’s now a question of raising the necessary debt and equity to finance the project.”
Kenney said that an Alberta-U.S. government partnership would likely be necessary to derisk the project, as potential private sector buyers have been scared away by regulatory uncertainty on both sides of the border.
Meanwhile, the Trudeau government looks to be sticking to its decarbonization agenda following Trump’s victory.
“We need to think about whether we focus on energy security in a way that makes us clearly an important part of the U.S. (strategy),” said Morneau.
“Is it really the right time for caps on emissions?”
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