Regina’s economy to be ‘OK’ despite Energy East decision

The death of the Energy East pipeline means the death of about 1,000 jobs in Saskatchewan, many of which would have been in the Regina area according to Economic Development Regina (EDR).

“It’s hugely disappointing,” said John Lee, President and CEO of EDR.

Earlier this week, TransCanada decided to scrap the multi-billion dollar pipeline project that would have carried oil from Alberta and Saskatchewan to refineries in New Brunswick.

Even though that economic surge won’t be felt in the city, Lee isn’t overly concerned with the future of growth.

“This is a little bit of a blip in the equation. We’re still very confident that the Regina region’s economy is going to continue to do well and continue to grow and prosper,” he said.

Part of the reason for that Lee continued is that Regina now has what he described as a “very diversified economy”, calling the current climate strong.

“We’ll be OK but this will just be a piece that is no longer part of the puzzle in the short term,” Lee said.

He thinks the Queen City will move forward regardless of this pipeline.

Lee pointed to several other future initiatives in areas around agriculture and manufacturing that will enable the city and region’s economy to continue to grow. He hinted how in the coming week’s expansion-related announcements are likely to be made by different companies in these sectors that will serve as evidence of diversification.