Federal govt 'output-based pricing system' for large emitters won't apply in AB. Fed carbon tax will still apply on fuels (gasoline, diesel, nat gas), but industrial emitters will be exempt from fed carbon tax and, instead, will be covered under Kenney gov't TIER plan. 1/n
With this in place, it means that carbon pricing will be very similar in AB in 2020 to what it was before UCP was elected. Key difference will be more free emissions credits to some large emitters, in particular in the oil sands, but same treatment in electricity as previous. 2/n
That last part is also why you should be okay with this announcement. The key margin in which carbon price matters in AB is electricity, and the Kenney TIER plan is more stringent on power than the Trudeau plan would have been. That's going to drive continued GHG cuts in AB. 3/n
This is a good move by @JustinTrudeau's government. Kenney delivered a plan that's comparable and in some ways better than the federal alternative. That should be an easy call for an equivalency agreement - let the provinces regulate where they are willing and able to do so.
