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Fraser Institute News Release: B.C. and Alberta least-attractive Canadian provinces for oil and gas investment, according to annual global survey

/EINPresswire.com/ -- CALGARY, AB--(Marketwired - November 28, 2017) - British Columbia now ranks as the least-attractive Canadian jurisdiction for oil and gas investment -- followed by Alberta, finds the annual global survey of petroleum-sector executives released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan, Canadian public policy think-tank.

Since B.C.'s provincial election in May, the province has plummeted to near the bottom of the global rankings.

"Investor confidence matters, and having a government that's openly hostile to resource development has apparently sent a chill throughout the oil and gas industry," said Kenneth Green, senior director of the Fraser Institute's Centre for Natural Resources and co-author of the 2017 Global Petroleum Survey.

This year B.C. dropped to 76th out of 97 jurisdictions (from 39th out of 96 last year) on the global index, a comprehensive measure of the extent policy deters oil and gas investment.

In the survey, which was conducted after the B.C. election, oil and gas executives gave the province low marks for political stability and the high cost of regulatory compliance.

Meanwhile Alberta -- ranked 33rd overall this year -- is the second-lowest Canadian jurisdiction after B.C., and even though Alberta's score improved slightly this year, its ranking remains far behind 2014 levels when it placed 14th globally out of 156 jurisdictions.

More than 50 per cent of survey respondents said Alberta's high taxes deterred investment in the province's oil and gas sector.

Elsewhere in Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador was the top ranked province having moved up from 25th last year to the fourth most attractive worldwide this year. Saskatchewan -- ranked 4th globally last year -- ranks 7th this year.

South of the border, six U.S. states rank in the top 10 global jurisdictions including Texas, Oklahoma, North Dakota, West Virginia, Kansas and Wyoming. And because the U.S. administration is pursuing major tax reforms and reducing regulatory red tape for the energy industry, American jurisdictions could be viewed even more favourably in coming years.

"The competitive headwinds Canadian jurisdictions already face in the energy sector will likely get stiffer as regulatory and tax burdens continue to lighten in the U.S.," Green said.

"The shackles are being taken off the U.S. energy sector, which spells trouble for Canadian jurisdictions trying to attract oil and gas investment dollars."

 
Canadian provincial rankings from the 2017 Global Petroleum Survey
 
Province   2017 Global Rank (out of 97)   2016 Global Rank (out of 96)
Newfoundland and Labrador   4   25
Saskatchewan   7   4
Manitoba   12   14
Nova Scotia   26   56
Alberta   33   43
British Columbia   76   39
*NOTE: 2017 data were not available for Ontario, Quebec, Yukon, NWT and New Brunswick.
 

MEDIA CONTACT:

Kenneth P. Green, Senior Director, Natural Resource Studies
Fraser Institute

To arrange media interviews or for more information, please contact:
Bryn Weese, Media Relations Specialist, Fraser Institute
Tel: (604) 688-0221 Ext. 589
E-mail: bryn.weese@fraserinstitute.org

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The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal and ties to a global network of think-tanks in 87 countries. Its mission is to improve the quality of life for Canadians, their families and future generations by studying, measuring and broadly communicating the effects of government policies, entrepreneurship and choice on their well-being. To protect the Institute's independence, it does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research. Visit www.fraserinstitute.org

Bryn Weese
Media Relations Specialist
Fraser Institute
Tel: (604) 688-0221 Ext. 589
E-mail: bryn.weese@fraserinstitute.org