Canada's Decarbonized Crude Oil Dream: A Reality Check

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's ambitious plan to make Canada an 'energy superpower' through 'decarbonized crude oil' has been met with skepticism. During a meeting with premiers last year, Carney emphasized the importance of decarbonizing crude oil as part of the country's nation-building projects.

However, experts argue that decarbonizing crude oil is not currently feasible and may never be. They point out that removing carbon atoms from crude oil results in no longer having crude oil, producing instead valuable products like carbon black and hydrogen.

The Pathways CCUS project, touted as the world's largest carbon capture, utilization, and storage project, will cost around $16.5 billion to deploy for oilsands producers. The federal government is covering roughly 75% of the capital cost, with Canadian taxpayers paying at least 62% of the total.

Critics argue that CCUS projects significantly reduce profitability for oilsands producers and do not address the majority of carbon emissions associated with crude oil consumption.