The Usual Benefits of Big OIl

[Bar Sinister]

The recent plans of Imperial Oil to begin the construction of its $8 billion oil upgrader should have been good news for the Alberta metal fabrication industry. Unfortunately, Imperial Oil has so far chosen to award contracts dealing with this development to firms in South Korea. Indeed, it looks as if Imperial Oil's plans for development in Alberta have a good deal to do with shipping as many jobs out of the province as possible.

Imperial snubs Alberta workers

I don't blame blame Imperial Oil or its American parent company Exxon-Mobile for this. I blame the morons in the Alberta legislature who allow giant foreign multinationals to come into the province and strip Albertans of a resource that belongs to them while at the same time creating as few jobs in the province as they can get away with. When are Canadian politicians going to have the guts to demand that foreign companies give Canadian firms priority over companies in Korea and the USA? Certainly if the US can launch a use-American campaign Canada and Alberta should be able to do the same thing. Sadly, as long as the PCs in Alberta remain in power it is very unlikely to happen.

 

[AnnaG]

It seems to me that the Gliberals have not had much to do with Alberta's prosperity, and the Suckreds and Cons have.
I would make a bet that Imperial Oil's choice had more to do with worker wages and other factors in maximizing profit than the politics of AB.

 

[hermite]

That's right. Until North Americans learn that they're going to have to be happy making $2 an hour, jobs will continue to go to countries where that's what they pay.

And no one in government, no matter what party brush you paint them with, gives a hoot. As long as they and their buddies, the corporate heads, are making the big bucks, the rest of us can just suck rocks. Get used to it.

 

[Liberalman]

Thank God the MLA had his thinking cap on.

I guess this is the first attempt at the foreign oil companies to bypass the local manufacturing sector.

Could this be a free trade issue?

Alberta should charge extra royalties for foreign companies that do this.

But then again we are talking about Kearl oil sands project that takes a lots more time and money to develop.

With oil sands you need an oil price of $60.00 a barrel and it's at $76.00 right now and since the recession is still on the demand for oil has decreased and add the green technologies, oil is slowly being replaced by other fuels.

I don't think Alberta is going to put up much of a fight.

 

[Bar Sinister]

That's right. Until North Americans learn that they're going to have to be happy making $2 an hour, jobs will continue to go to countries where that's what they pay.

And no one in government, no matter what party brush you paint them with, gives a hoot. As long as they and their buddies, the corporate heads, are making the big bucks, the rest of us can just suck rocks. Get used to it.

This is South Korea that is being give the contracts. There are no $2 an hour workers there any more.

 

[Bar Sinister]

Thank God the MLA had his thinking cap on.

I guess this is the first attempt at the foreign oil companies to bypass the local manufacturing sector.

Could this be a free trade issue?

Alberta should charge extra royalties for foreign companies that do this.

But then again we are talking about Kearl oil sands project that takes a lots more time and money to develop.

With oil sands you need an oil price of $60.00 a barrel and it's at $76.00 right now and since the recession is still on the demand for oil has decreased and add the green technologies, oil is slowly being replaced by other fuels.

I don't think Alberta is going to put up much of a fight.

Your last comment is certainly accurate. The current PC government wouldn't stand up to big oil if the industry suggested that the government members sacrifice their daughters in order to achieve economic success.

 

[petros]

Take a guess who Harper and his dad worked/work for. Who does he owe his loyaltiy to? The corporation that fed his family for two generations or the country he lives in? Who has given more to the Harper family and what are their obligations to maintain the future Harper/ Imperial relationship?

 

[petros]

Take a guess who Harper and his dad worked/work for. Who does he owe his loyaltiy to? The corporation that fed his family for two generations or the country he lives in? Who has given more to the Harper family and what are their obligations to maintain the future Harper/ Imperial relationship?

Another example of coroporations in bed with national leaders. Take a look at what two generations of Bush and a long term Cheney did for Rio Tinto. Was that just coincidence?

 

[wulfie68]

Bar Sinister is right in some respects: the gov't of Alberta (especially under Sleepy Stelmach) has been horrible at encouraging companies to grow and utilize local resources for fabrication on the mega projects. They've been content with the assembly of the plants and production of the resources, which HAS meant a lot of jobs/prosperity, but these projects could have created entire industries in Alberta that the respective gov'ts were happy to see go elsewhere for whatever reason. Another case in point was when Encana made their agreement to upgrade all their heavy oil at a facility in the States (in the Dakotas if I recall correctly).

The problem in Alberta politics is that there has been no real alternative: people still (with good reason) curse Trudeau and thus the Liberal Party is anathema to most and the NDP set an absolute disasterous example in BC to our west for years. Until that alternative emerges, the election of the premier will be the PC leadership race...

 

[Cobalt_Kid]

The conservative government here may as well be a lobby group for the energy sector.

 

[karrie]

This is South Korea that is being give the contracts. There are no $2 an hour workers there any more.

Nope... they have to pay way more than that because they kill their workers off like flies apparently. When my friend's rig was being built there, the North Americans weren't allowed anywhere near the ship yard because the death toll outpaced anything their company was willing to risk with North American workers.