The federal government introduced Bill C-39 (Building Canada Strong Act) on September 21, 2026. The bill aims to complete project reviews in one year, with a single window for proponents, rather than requiring them to deal with multiple federal and provincial agencies. Business stakeholders have responded positively to the draft legislation.

This week on the podcast, our guest is Gitane De Silva, Founder & President of GDStrategic, Executive Director of the Peter Lougheed School of Politics and Democracy at the University of Alberta, and former CEO of the Canada Energy Regulator (CER).

Gitane helps us understand the proposed regulatory process, how it compares with the fast-track process under Bill C-5 (which the new Pacific Link, formerly known as the West Coast Oil Pipeline, will follow), and the process established under Bill C-69, famously called the “No New Pipelines Bill.” She also explains the roles of the various agencies involved, depending on the type of project being reviewed.

Content referenced in this podcast:

• The Alberta Government’s website on the Pacific Link oil pipeline (formerly known as West Coast Oil Pipeline)
• The Government of Canada's background document on Bill C-39
• The full text of Bill C-39
• The Hub.com article by Sean Speer “Carney’s moves on building and labour are an outright rejection of Trudeau economics” (Sept 26)
• CBC “Facing criticism, Carney says he has a 'very clear mandate' to push through major economic changes (Sept 22)

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This week, we recorded the podcast at the Energy Disruptors: UNITE conference in Calgary. Our guest, Bob Galyen, is one of the top executives in the battery energy storage world and the former Chief Technology Officer of CATL. He now serves on boards in the emerging U.S. battery sector and owns Galyen Energy.

Battery technology has advanced significantly over the past decade, enabling EV adoption and backing up wind and solar power generation. New battery chemistries promise even greater utility, including longer duration, faster charging, and lower costs.

In their conversation with Bob, Peter and Jackie explore a wide range of topics, including new battery chemistries and Bob’s five golden rules of electrification: safety, performance, lifetime, cost, and environment. They also discuss the geopolitics of batteries and China’s dominance in the sector, including how the Chinese government supported the battery industry’s development. The conversation contrasts China’s approach with that of the United States, which is developing a domestic battery industry to reduce reliance on China for these critical materials and technologies.

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LinkedIn: @ARC Energy Research Institute

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This podcast is also available as a video on Youtube

Data centres have faced growing public backlash in the United States. In Alberta, opposition has been less widespread, and the provincial government supports the industry, but communities are raising concerns.

This week, our guests -Deirdre Sheehan, Partner and Co-Chair of the Regulatory, Indigenous and Environmental practice at Osler, and Marcus Rocque, Vice President of Research at the ARC Energy Research Institute, review the main concerns surrounding data centres, using the topics outlined in Premier Smith’s recent video as a guide:

• What is a data centre, and why does Alberta want them?
• Didn’t other places get burned by data centres?
• How do Albertan’s actually benefit from these data centres?
• Will my power bill go up?
• What about water?
• Who decides where these data centres get built?

Content referenced in this podcast:

• Alberta Premier Smith video on six common questions on AI data centers

Please review our disclaimer at: https://www.arcenergyinstitute.com/disclaimer/

Check us out on social media:

X (Twitter): @arcenergyinst
LinkedIn: @ARC Energy Research Institute

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