Why environmentalists say the grilling of the Suncor CEO lets the federal government off easy
CBC
On Parliament Hill this week, MPs grilled Rich Kruger, the CEO of Suncor, over comments he made on an investor call this summer.
He had told shareholders that Suncor, the Calgary-based energy giant, was too focused on the energy transition and had to get back to its fundamental business — the oilsands.
Kruger told the House standing committee on natural resources his comments were misinterpreted and that his focus is on ensuring the company is making profits now to be able to afford the required investments in decarbonization.
"It's good for business, and it's the right thing to do," said Kruger, a former executive at Imperial Oil and ExxonMobil. "When those things can overlap, we are sufficiently incentivized to spend money to research and to pursue new business opportunities."
WATCH | Canada was called out for expansion of fossil fuel production in the last year.
But in many cases across the industry, that hasn't happened. After pledging in recent years to cut back on production and emissions and focus on renewables, oil and gas companies have in recent months walked those commitments back despite seeing record profits.
Catherine Abreu, founder of Canadian non-profit Destination Zero, which works with climate groups across the country, said the dynamic that played out during the hearing revealed less about Suncor's profit motive than it did about the federal government's failures.
"We should not be surprised that the CEO of a publicly traded company is primarily interested in returning profits to his shareholders," Abreu said in an interview.
"In order to meet our climate goals, we need to be seeing the hand of government step in."
The president of Shell Canada, Susannah Pierce, made the point recently that oil companies can only decarbonize as fast as the rest of the economy.
"[If you are] a company that is servicing its customers that are still demanding a fossil fuel energy source, it's very difficult to then not provide your customers with that energy they demand," she said.
In the United States, domestic oil production just hit an all-time high last week, and Canada could lead the world in oil production growth in 2024.
There has also been a wave of high-profile mergers and acquisitions in both the United States and Canada, in what experts say is a sign of an industry flush with cash and increasingly confident in the short- and medium-term outlook.
"As the world looks to transition and find lower sources of affordable energy with lower emissions, fossil fuels — oil and gas — are going to continue to play a role over time," ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods told CNBC after acquiring Pioneer Natural Resources for almost $60 billion US.
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