OilCo CEO Jim Keating calls the federal government’s emissions cap an “investment killer.”

That’s what Keating told reporters at the Energy NL Conference in St. John’s this morning.

He’s optimistic following the recent throne speech, but says Canada needs more oil exploration and changes to the emissions cap if it wants to become an “energy super power.”

He says Canada is currently in a lull as federal regulations have killed some investments, and if the feds don’t move quickly enough, the future for oil will be bleak.

“In my discussions with investors, there is a lot of uncertainty around the emissions cap,” he told reporters.

“The emissions cap is an investment killer. It really chilled out the interest that folks have to invest in our offshore, mostly because companies are not sure that they’re going to be able to be here through the end of their productive days if they’ve got to consider regulations that are, right now, difficult to understand.”