He could have saved his breath — or the emissions of flying to Berlin on a Canadair jet..Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson came up with mostly empty promises after he travelled to Germany this week on a trade mission to promote clean energy with more than a dozen companies, trade organizations and indigenous groups..During the three-day mission Wilkinson met with German Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck to announce a joint declaration on hydrogen development. The agreement aims to develop global certification standards and explore ways to identify and accelerate hydrogen investments on either side of the Atlantic..In addition, Wilkinson met up with his French and German counterparts to accelerate production and export of “clean” hydrogen and develop carbon intensity standards to facilitate a global hydrogen market between Canada and its trading partners..In a statement, NRCan said “Canada and Germany are like-minded global partners with a shared commitment to bolstering multilateralism and the rules-based international order. This week's mission to Berlin was part of a series of significant steps the Government of Canada continues to take to create good jobs across Canada while supporting its international allies and fighting climate change.”.Wilkinson added: “Canada and Germany are allies in the support of Ukraine, in NATO and in energy and climate. This week, we made tangible progress on building secure and clean energy systems between our two countries, and I look forward to continuing to work with our German friends in this space.”.The moves were framed in the context of European energy security after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. To that end Canada donated a grand total of seven power transformers to help repair Ukraine’s power grid after meeting with German Galushchenko, Ukraine’s energy minister..All well and good, apart from the fact power transformers are the only meaningful things Canada can provide in the absence of any significant commercial hydrogen production. There was curiously no mention of LNG — which we also lack in the absence of pipelines to the East Coast..Last summer Prime Minister Justin Trudeau left observers scratching their collective heads after suggesting Canadian LNG could help Germany diversify away from Russian gas supplies..This even though the Canadian Energy Centre said Canada enjoys significant competitive advantages in global LNG markets. Western Canada currently has a cost advantage over other LNG-exporting countries such as the US and Australia, due in part to Canada’s proximity and lower ambient temperatures, which helps lower liquefaction costs, it said..Nonetheless, that advantage is mainly confined to Asian markets not Europe. And it still precludes the fact the US and Australia have functioning export terminals..Wilkinson will be at it again next month when he travels with Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault to Sapporo, Japan, for the G7 Ministers' meeting on climate, energy and environment. .There, NRCan said Wilkinson will continue to work with all partners to “establish Canada as the global supplier of choice for clean energy in a net-zero world.”
He could have saved his breath — or the emissions of flying to Berlin on a Canadair jet..Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson came up with mostly empty promises after he travelled to Germany this week on a trade mission to promote clean energy with more than a dozen companies, trade organizations and indigenous groups..During the three-day mission Wilkinson met with German Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck to announce a joint declaration on hydrogen development. The agreement aims to develop global certification standards and explore ways to identify and accelerate hydrogen investments on either side of the Atlantic..In addition, Wilkinson met up with his French and German counterparts to accelerate production and export of “clean” hydrogen and develop carbon intensity standards to facilitate a global hydrogen market between Canada and its trading partners..In a statement, NRCan said “Canada and Germany are like-minded global partners with a shared commitment to bolstering multilateralism and the rules-based international order. This week's mission to Berlin was part of a series of significant steps the Government of Canada continues to take to create good jobs across Canada while supporting its international allies and fighting climate change.”.Wilkinson added: “Canada and Germany are allies in the support of Ukraine, in NATO and in energy and climate. This week, we made tangible progress on building secure and clean energy systems between our two countries, and I look forward to continuing to work with our German friends in this space.”.The moves were framed in the context of European energy security after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. To that end Canada donated a grand total of seven power transformers to help repair Ukraine’s power grid after meeting with German Galushchenko, Ukraine’s energy minister..All well and good, apart from the fact power transformers are the only meaningful things Canada can provide in the absence of any significant commercial hydrogen production. There was curiously no mention of LNG — which we also lack in the absence of pipelines to the East Coast..Last summer Prime Minister Justin Trudeau left observers scratching their collective heads after suggesting Canadian LNG could help Germany diversify away from Russian gas supplies..This even though the Canadian Energy Centre said Canada enjoys significant competitive advantages in global LNG markets. Western Canada currently has a cost advantage over other LNG-exporting countries such as the US and Australia, due in part to Canada’s proximity and lower ambient temperatures, which helps lower liquefaction costs, it said..Nonetheless, that advantage is mainly confined to Asian markets not Europe. And it still precludes the fact the US and Australia have functioning export terminals..Wilkinson will be at it again next month when he travels with Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault to Sapporo, Japan, for the G7 Ministers' meeting on climate, energy and environment. .There, NRCan said Wilkinson will continue to work with all partners to “establish Canada as the global supplier of choice for clean energy in a net-zero world.”
