Alberta Energy War Room funding was gutted for COVID19

The Alberta UCP government just today cut the Canadian Energy Centre’s budget by 90 percent due to the more pressing matter of the COVID19 pandemic. 

The “energy war room” budget will be brought down from $30 million yearly to just $2.84 million per year. 

The centre will not be running on a daily operating budget of only $7,800, down from $82,000, for three months until it will be reconsidered whether or not to return to regular levels of funding, depending on the severity of the situation regarding COVID19.

Energy Minister Sonya Savage stated that, “Global energy demand is down dramatically because of reduced consumption due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Saudi-initiated price war.” 

Western Canadian Select oil prices have plummeted in the midst of the oil price war, and the lack of economic activity has only further cratered demand for oil all over the world.

Later Savage reassured Albertans the budget cut did not represent the UCP government easing back on its commitments to develop Alberta’s energy industry.

Savage said “While some would like to capitalize on this unprecedented crisis to permanently shut down Canadian oil and gas, we do not believe we should surrender the global energy market to these opponents,” referencing again Saudi Arabia and Russia Federation.

NDP Energy Critic Irfan Sabir used the recent news to highlight his party’s total opposition to the spending on the Canadian Energy Centre, seeing its entire budget as a wasteful expense.

Sabir responded to UCP announcement saying that, “[CEC CEO] Tom Olsen and his war room buddies have been doing nothing for Albertans but waste $82,000 a day of their money on juvenile tweets and plagiarized logos.”

Sabir continued, “It’s good that they will be wasting slightly less in the coming weeks, but the premier should listen to the broad consensus of Albertans and scrap the war room altogether.”

Although despite NDP protest of the spending eventually once the COVID19 pandemic has been overcome the UCP will likely be restoring the full budget back to the war room in the mid to late summer.