Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario sign pipeline agreement
Posted July 22, 2025 4:15 pm.
Last Updated July 22, 2025 6:33 pm.
On Tuesday morning, the premiers of Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan announced a new memorandum of understanding calling for the construction of new pipelines using Ontario steel.
The agreement also calls for new rail lines to be built to help ship critical minerals from yet-to-be approved mines in the Ring of Fire to Western Canada.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford called the agreement a “game changer” that focuses on shipping Western oil to refineries in southern Ontario and a new deep sea port in James Bay.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she’s heard from Prime Minister Mark Carney that he wants to make Canada an energy superpower, and she wants him to drop “nine bad laws” she said are hurting the country’s business investment climate.
“I’m supportive of pipelines north, east and west; I want to see them all built,” Smith said.
Premier Smith touted the benefits of Alberta oil to eastern Canada.
“It should give us pause that we in eastern Canada are overly reliant on oil that either has to come by way of the United States, or has to be shipped in from overseas,” the Alberta premier said. “We could have addressed that years ago with the Energy East pipeline.”
B.C. Premier David Eby was not invited to sign the agreement and said he didn’t know the details. He was asked Tuesday whether his government is open to supporting the construction of an oil pipeline from Alberta to B.C.’s northern coast — something it has vocally opposed in the past.
“There’s no project, there’s no proponent, there’s no private sector money involved that I’m aware of,” he said. “When Premier Smith crosses those obvious hurdles to get a project done, then let’s have those conversations.”
Quebec opposed to pipelines?
But while the three provinces have come to a pipeline understanding, those studying the issue in Quebec say it’s unlikely to see pipelines built through their province — with little public appetite for the projects.
“What Ontario and Saskatchewan are bringing up is pretty much reheated projects the Quebecers have opposed before,” said Charles-Édouard Têtu, a climate energy policy analyst at Équiterre. “So the issues here mostly is on autonomy, how Quebec wants to have its own energy consumption ruled out.”
But while climate energy experts out east say it’s unlikely to see the province all in on fossil fuel, Ford is hoping Quebec’s provincial leadership can be persuaded.
“Premier François Legault is a very bright, business-minded person and we’ll get there,” Ford said. “They’re unique, we’ll get around to getting it done.”
Late Tuesday, Alberta announcing it had signed a deal with the Yukon government to increase access to markets for both areas.
