In this episode of The Line: Alberta Podcast, Rob Breakenridge is joined by Dr. Kent Fellows, assistant professor of economics at the University of Calgary and fellow-in-residence at the C.D. Howe Institute.
Sagging oil prices have once again highlighted the perils of Alberta’s over-reliance on energy revenues, even if the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion has helped to provide a revenue boost. This fiscal uncertainty comes at a time when Alberta is hoping Ottawa can deliver on some major new energy infrastructure — including, of course, a new pipeline — and potentially help pave the way for economic and energy corridors that could allow such projects to be fast-tracked in the future.
We’ll get some insight from Prof. Fellows on the economics underlying all of this: the implications of fluctuating oil prices on Alberta’s budget, the challenges of pipeline capacity and infrastructure development, as well as the political factors in the energy debate that often cloud what economic considerations.
The Line: Alberta is the new provincial bureau of The Line, and podcasts will be released via its own standalone podcast channels for audio formats. This includes via this Substack, but also The Line: Alberta’s new channels on all major podcasting apps.
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The good news is that we’ll be using our regular video channels for the release, though, so you can just check that out at the usual places. Which we assume you have already subscribed to!
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A note on commenting: We have received some questions about why people who can comment on The Line’s main page cannot comment here. Good question! Here’s our best shot at giving a concise answer.
You don't need to be a paid subscriber to the Alberta version to receive/read/listen to what we produce.
You do need to be a paid subscriber to The Line: Alberta to comment.
A paid subscription at The Line DOES NOT transfer over to a paid subscription at The Line: Alberta. That's not possible within the Substack ecosystem, the lists are entirely separate. This also reflects the reality that while we expect both properties to appeal to much the same audience, it won’t be a perfect overlap. Conversely, for clarity, a paid subscription here doesn’t give paid access to The Line’s main content, either.
Since there isn’t a technical way to give paid Line subscribers paid privileges at The Line: Alberta, we will not paywall, ever, the Alberta content, for that reason. Our operations here will be funded in other ways. Signing up for a paid subscription is your way of showing us support, and it is appreciated, but it isn’t necessary to access the content.
If you do sign up for a paid account here, commenting will be a perk (of sorts), as will some early or free access to in-person events. But you will get the same content as everyone else.
Hope this helps!
The Line: Alberta is a provincial bureau of The Line, edited by Jen Gerson and Matt Gurney. Email us at alberta@readtheline.ca.
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