If you’re having a bad start to the work day, at least be grateful you don’t have to deal with Molotov cocktails at the workplace. 

What happened: Work at the to-be-built Northvolt electric vehicle battery plant outside Montréal was briefly paused after staff found devices designed to start fires. It’s suspected to be the latest action in an ongoing sabotage campaign against the plant. 

As one Canadian company has learned the hard way, taking carbon out of the atmosphere is easier said than done.

What happened: Alberta’s Capital Power is scrapping its $2.4 billion carbon capture project, one of the largest in Canada. The decision to pull the plug for financial reasons is another red flag about the long-term viability of carbon capture.

G7 countries are hanging up their pickaxes and hardhats with lamp attachments as they prepare to dump coal as an energy source.

What happened: Member nations of the G7 (which includes Canada) have agreed on a plan to phase out coal power generation between 2030 and 2035. The agreement includes wiggle room for Germany and Japan, which still rely on coal for a quarter of their power.

For the last decade, the Trans Mountain pipeline has been like the kid that just keeps asking their parents for more money. Today, it finally has something to show for all that cash. 

What happened: The Trans Mountain pipeline expansion (TMX) officially launches operations today, a long-awaited feat that promises to boost Canadian oil exports and marks the finish of Canada’s most expensive — and frequently delayed — infrastructure project.

As Canadian oil and gas producers look to notch record outputs this year, severe droughts in Western Canada could rain on their parade — not literally, given, ya know, the droughts.

Driving the news: A new Deloitte report warns that oil and gas producers could have trouble sourcing water for their operations, as some of Canada’s driest places — northwest Alberta and northeast B.C. — just so happen to be the centre of oil and gas country.

Canada is buddying up with its pilsner-drinking, schnitzel-eating ally to kick-start a new clean energy trade market. 

What happened: Canada and Germany agreed to help accelerate the creation of a global market for clean hydrogen gas — a low-emission energy source used to power industrial machines, heavy vehicles, and residential heating — and connect Atlantic Canada producers with EU buyers. 

                              Alberta       Scared birds

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 “Maybe we should cool it with all these new wind turbines.”

What happened: After lifting a seven-month ban on new renewable energy projects, Alberta has introduced rules restricting where future developments can set up shop in order to keep prime agricultural lands for farmers and preserve the province’s “pristine viewscapes.”

Like us trying to do spreadsheets while also taking a Zoom call, Canada’s pipelines are at full capacity.

Driving the news: Sure as the sun rises in the east, the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion hit yet another delay, this time due to technical issues. The long-awaited expansion is now unlikely to meet its April start date but is still on track to begin operations next quarter. 

As provinces play the part of ‘parents trying to keep the energy bills down,’ crypto miners are playing the part of ‘little brother who stayed up all night gaming with the lights on.’

What happened: New crypto mining projects in B.C. will continue to be temporarily barred from tapping into the province’s energy supply after a recent B.C. Supreme Court ruling. 

In a surprise move, Canada’s southern neighbour is pumping the brakes on its booming natural gas business. 

What happened: U.S. President Joe Biden is pausing approvals for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities in the country, a move that is expected to have a ripple effect on the Canadian energy producers that rely on the U.S. to export their natural gas globally.