Canadian Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference – Federal-Provincial-Territorial Council of Energy Ministers’ (CEM) Meeting

WINNIPEG — Canada’s federal, provincial and territorial ministers of energy discussed issues of importance to the energy sector yesterday during the annual Conference of Energy and Mines Ministers in Winnipeg. Co-chairs of the conference, the Honourable Herb Dhaliwal, Minister of Natural Resources Canada, and the Honourable Oscar Lathlin, Manitoba’s Minister of Conservation, made the following joint statement at the conclusion of the day’s discussions.

“Today we had an opportunity to hear from a variety of individuals and organizations involved with the energy industry, including upstream and downstream sectors, electricity and renewables — including renewable fuels.

“As Ministers, we were pleased to see that the focus of the presentations was on sustainable development and the growth of the Canadian energy sector.”

Many other important issues were discussed throughout the day, including competitiveness, climate change and other environmental issues. These were discussed in the context of their potential impact on the Canadian energy economy.

The production and trade of energy commodities and services are key components of Canada’s economy. These activities are also fundamental to other sectors, including manufacturing and transportation.

Federal, provincial and territorial ministers agreed to “continue working with industry to enhance the Canadian energy sector, remove barriers to further growth and take advantage of the numerous opportunities before us.”

Ministers agreed to extend the mandate of the working group on an east-west transmission grid study, as well as the working group looking at options for increasing production and the use of fuel ethanol, including potential cost and environmental impacts. They created a new working group to study options for increasing the deployment of renewable technologies.

Discussions with mines ministers on issues pertinent to the minerals and metals industries continue today. The results of minerals and metals discussions will be incorporated into the Action Plan 2002, to be released later this fall. The Plan will be available on the Mines Ministers’ Conference Web site at http://www.nrcan-rncan.gc.ca/mms/mmc/sub02_e.htm.

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For more information, media may contact:

Heather Bala
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister
Natural Resources Canada
Ottawa
(613) 996-7252