Premier Dwight Ball says those who are calling to shutdown offshore oil production in the province, are really saying to move the industry to “carbon intense oil”.
Ball says what we have in the province is unique and different than what’s happening in Alberta and other jurisdictions.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, Ball says the oil and gas industry adds tremendous benefits, jobs, royalties and helps to support social programs. He reiterates that the province’s oil has 50 per cent less carbon, per barrel of oil, than other jurisdictions, and shutting that down for more carbon intense oil isn’t good for the planet, greenhouse gas emissions or the province.
Oil is itself a hydrocarbon. A per-barrel carbon measurement would refer to the emissions released during extraction processing more than the oil itself.
The world uses around 96-million barrels of oil on any given day, and Ball says there is nothing in the near future that suggests that will not continue.
The Premier says their job as government is to make sure they use each industry to complement the other, so when the world comes off of oil at some point they’re ready to replace that with new green initiatives. That’s why they invested to put charging stations in place for those who made the decision to replace a gas-fueled engine with an electric car.
He say there is no question we need to prepare and there is no question on the global movement to reduce fossil fuels. But, as it exists today, the world needs oil and we have some of the best and cleanest in the world.