An oil refinery in Alberta
Letter from Canada: Alberta’s debt quagmire
The province’s strategy of stimulating economic diversification through oil revenue largesse has largely proved a failure
Alberta has long squandered its oil and gas wealth, behaving more like Venezuela than Norway. Instead of saving non-renewable resource revenue for a rainy day, let alone future generations of Albertans, the provincial government has instead used royalty revenues to provide high quality social services and keep taxes low—the so-called ‘Alberta Advantage’. It was hoped a healthy and well-educated population and low tax rates would encourage businesses in other industries to locate in laissez-faire Alberta to diversify the province’s economy. But this has not happened. Instead, it has rained heavily on Alberta since the middle of last decade, precipitated by the 2014-16 oil price crash, since
Also in this section
5 March 2026
Gas is a central pillar of Colombia’s energy system, but declining production poses a significant challenge, and LNG will be increasingly needed as a stopgap. A recent major offshore gas discovery offers hope, but policy improvements are also required, Camilo Morales, secretary general of Naturgas, the Colombian gas association, tells Petroleum Economist
4 March 2026
The continent’s inventories were already depleted before conflict erupted in the Middle East, causing prices to spike ahead of the crucial summer refilling season
4 March 2026
The US president has repeatedly promised to lower gasoline prices, but this ambition conflicts with his parallel aim to increase drilling and could be upended by his war against Iran
4 March 2026
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed following US-Israel strikes and Iran’s retaliatory escalation, Fujairah has become the region’s critical pressure release valve—and is now under serious threat
