Ottawa expected to release details of carbon capture tax credit soon, Cenovus says

Cenovus itself has set a target to reduce emissions by 35 per cent by 2035 from 2019 levels.

Cenovus Energy Inc. says Ottawa’s forthcoming release of details about its proposed tax credit for carbon capture, utilization and storage projects (CCUS) should be followed by “significant government support” so the industry can widely adopt the technology.

The Calgary-based oil producer has been involved in ongoing discussions with Ottawa over the tax credit, which was announced in this year’s federal budget. On Wednesday, Rhona DelFrari, the company’s chief sustainability officer, said the talks have been going well.

“Everyone is in a very collaborative mood,” DelFrari told reporters following Cenovus’ annual investor day event. “We continue to have a lot of ongoing dialogue with them as the government works toward its investment tax credit that they intend to provide more detail about soon.”

READ MORE: Calgary-based oilsands producer Cenovus aims for ‘net zero’ GHG emissions by 2050

CCUS is a technology that captures greenhouse gas emissions from industrial sources and stores them deep in the ground to prevent them from being released into the atmosphere.

Proponents say vastly scaling up CCUS across the oil and gas industry will be necessary if Canada is to have a shot at meeting its climate targets. However, some environmentalists are critical of the technology that does nothing to curb overall production of fossil fuel products.

In its five-year plan released Wednesday, Cenovus includes smaller, near-term CCUS projects in the works at its Lloydminster Upgrader, Minnedosa Ethanol Plant, and Elmworth gas plant.

Longer-term, Cenovus is part of the Oil Sands Pathways to Net Zero Alliance, a group of Canadian oilsands producers whose vision of getting the industry to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 is anchored by a proposed major CCUS transportation line that would capture CO2 from oilsands facilities and transport it to a storage facility near Cold Lake, Alta.