Carney keeping emissions cap on oil and gas, but focusing on investing in green tech

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed Friday that his government would keep the emissions cap on oil and gas production in place if elected — but would fast-track investments in carbon capture to meet those emissions targets.

Speaking to reporters in Ottawa Friday after the first ministers meeting, Carney was asked to clarify his stance on the issue after appearing to contradict his environment minister on Thursday.

The Canadian Press reported on Thursday a Carney government would keep the emissions cap in place, citing comments from an interview with Environment Minister Terry Duguid.

But at an event in Edmonton later Thursday, Carney said he would work with industry and with provinces “on specific ways to get those reductions, as opposed to … having preset caps or preset restrictions on preset timelines.”

Asked to clarify his stance on Friday, Carney confirmed that while he would keep the emissions cap in place, his focus is on speeding up federal investments in technology which would help lower emissions in the oil and gas sector.

“There is a role for an emissions cap — and again, emissions cap, not a production cap, just to be clear because some twist it — but what’s required in order to get those emissions down of the production that we can see growing … is investment,” Carney said.

“Investment in carbon capture and storage technology, investment in reducing methane. What happened in (the first ministers meeting), is what the federal government is doing is putting in place the framework so that investment is going to happen more quickly.

“So the cap is there. The issue is getting the investments down, how are we going to get them down. I’m focused on that. We’re making progress in unlocking that. We’re need to continue to work on it.”

In November, Ottawa introduced draft regulations — two years behind schedule — that require producers to cut emissions by about one-third over the next eight years.

The Liberals have said repeatedly they aren’t capping production, just the emissions that come from it — a bid to force companies to invest in technology to produce the fuels more cleanly. But industry leaders and Conservative politicians insist the targets are too stringent and can’t be met without capping production.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has called on Ottawa to remove the cap entirely, saying it sets unrealistic targets.

Smith met with Carney in Edmonton on Thursday, and on Friday told reporters she laid out nine issues that “have depressed oil and gas investment.”

“Yesterday in my discussions with the prime minister, I made it clear that Alberta will no longer tolerate an emissions cap on oil and gas, which absolutely works like a production cap,” Smith said Friday.

“He told me in the meeting, and then later in the press conference with the media that same day, that he wasn’t in favour of hard caps like that. He said he was interested in results and getting new pipelines in the ground.”

Smith said those words were reassuring, until she saw Duguid’s comments.

“The regulation or a law doesn’t reduce emissions,” Carney told reporters Friday in Ottawa.

“What I’m focused on is action in order to reduce those emissions. That requires partnerships, it requires a different framework — the types of things we talked about (at the first ministers meeting).”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 21, 2025.

Nick Murray, The Canadian Press