Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau announced a slew of new funding initiatives, including a $1.7-billion investment to clean up orphaned oil wells that could maintain 5,200 jobs in Alberta.
The announcement comes after the Canadian energy sector requested repeatedly for specific measures from Ottawa to aid them in the face of COVID-19, as well as a global slide in oil prices as Russia and Saudi Arabia engage in a price war.
Trudeau's announcement for the energy industry, he said, is aimed at supporting the oil and gas sector while also maintaining Ottawa's current focus on environmental goals, the prime minister said. Also announced today was a pollution reduction fund that will go to cut emissions from places like offshore oil rigs in Labrador. That program should maintain about 10,000 jobs across Canada, Trudeau added.
"Just because we are in a health crisis doesn't mean we can ignore the environment crisis," Trudeau said at his daily press conference Friday morning.
When asked about the oil and gas perhaps expecting more direct support (such as Ottawa subsidizing or buying shares in Canadian energy firms), Trudeau said the policies have a focus of directly helping Canadians who are affected by the COVID-19 outbreak instead of certain companies.
"We need to help Canadians," he said.
Also announced Friday by Trudeau is a $962-million investment in regional development agencies and networks that, Trudeau said, will aid small businesses' employees in rural areas that may not have access to traditional financial institutions for previous subsidies. There was also a $330-million investment to the Futurepreneur Canada to support entrepreneurs who do not qualify for previously announced support funding.
