Alberta’s Petrochemical Program, an incentive to global petrochemical investment
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Alberta, Oct 30 (Canadian-Media): A new program, The Alberta Petrochemicals Incentive Program (APIP) is being launched by Alberta to turn it into a top global producer of petrochemicals with an aggressive industry-driven strategy to promote long-term international investment and thousands of jobs to the province.
The development of the program was based on best practices in competing jurisdictions, including several American states with large petrochemical industries. The program was also refined with the input of stakeholders and interested companies.
Drawing directly on our abundant reserves of natural gas, APIP aims to attract billions in petrochemical project investments as well as to help and continue to diversify the province’s economy to enable aggressive competition with similar incentives for petrochemical manufacturers in several jurisdictions across Asia, the Middle East, and those in the Gulf of Mexico in the United States to become a global destination for petrochemical investment.
“Today we’re adding another incentive to Alberta’s already world-class opportunities for petrochemical development. On top of our existing petrochemical producers and all the companies that feed in and support them, we have a multi-generational supply of natural gas, an experienced workforce, and one of the lowest tax rates in North America. By launching this program, Alberta moves towards achieving the goal of becoming one of the most attractive investment opportunities for petrochemicals in the world,” said Dale Nally, Alberta’s Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity in a news release.
Being one of the most established petrochemical industries in Canada, Alberta exhibits potential growth in existing centers like Alberta’s Industrial Heartland, Grande Prairie, Joffre, and Medicine Hat.
Being one of the key pillars of the Natural Gas Vision and Strategy program, the province’s goal is to become a top global producer of petrochemicals. According to Alberta’s Industrial Heartland Association, there is an opportunity to grow Alberta’s petrochemical sector, more than $30 billion by 2030 could result in more than 90,000 direct and indirect jobs over the construction and operations of new facilities as well as a revenue of more than $10 billion for the Government of Alberta from corporate and personal income taxes, with its lowest corporate tax rate in Canada at eight percent compares favorably with the lowest tax rates in the United States.
Being bold, and ambitious, Alberta’s Recovery Plan with its long-term strategy to build, diversify, and create tens of thousands of jobs now by building schools, roads, and other core infrastructure benefiting our communities. By diversifying our economy and attracting investment with Canada’s most competitive tax environment, we are putting Alberta on a path for a generation of growth.
To encourage additional investment in the sector, Invest Alberta, Alberta international offices, and Alberta’s industrial associations are all doing their part by courting petrochemical companies and investors by highlighting the many benefits of investing in Alberta’s growing petrochemical industry to share the opportunities available.
Hydrogen-producing facilities will also be eligible for APIP, ensuring continued interest from investors in the province’s nascent hydrogen economy.
“Diversifying our energy industry is key to ensuring Albertans will have good-paying jobs and careers to get excited about in the future. Alberta has the potential to become a major player in low-carbon hydrogen and sustainable plastics production, but we’ll only get there if we have a competitive edge over other jurisdictions. Petrochemical companies have dozens of factors to consider when choosing where to invest, and we’re putting together a winning formula to ensure Alberta is at the top of their lists, ” said Doug Schweitzer, Minister of Jobs, Economy, and Innovation in a news release.
APIP offers a direct financial incentive on new petrochemical or fertilizer facilities, or on expansions to existing ones. High-level details include:
- Once a project is up and running, 12 percent worth of their eligible capital costs would be granted to companies that have successfully applied, in the final step in the process after verification of details of the scope and expected cost of the project.
- While the application window for small projects (between $50 million and $150 million in capital costs) will be open for five years, applications for larger projects will be open for 10 years.
“The Alberta Petrochemicals Incentive Program is a meaningful incentive program that will strengthen Alberta’s value proposition for large-scale petrochemical investments. As Canada’s largest hydrocarbon processing region and a critical partner in Canada’s energy future, Alberta’s Industrial Heartland is focused on capturing a potential $30 billion in new, diversified, value-add investments by 2030. As an investment attraction tool, APIP will increase our region’s competitiveness and enhance our ability to attract petrochemical investment projects that diversify Alberta’s economy,” said Mark Plamondon, executive director, Alberta’s Industrial Heartland Association in a news release.
“Low-cost, low-carbon, and abundant — Alberta’s natural gas and natural gas liquids make it a global player in industrial chemical manufacturing. The Alberta government recognizes this potential and the Petrochemicals Incentive Program goes a long way to level the playing field with other jurisdictions competing for new investment. The opportunity for growth in this sector exists in the province and that is good news for jobs, new global-scale investment, and Alberta’s economy,” said Bob Masterson, president, and CEO, Chemistry Industry Association of Canada in a news release.
“We have heard directly from companies that they have been looking at Alberta for greater chemistry investments, but that we are also competing with the best locations around the world. The Alberta Petrochemicals Incentive Program helps to provide the necessary incentives to grow Alberta’s burgeoning petrochemical sector, which in turn will provide thousands of good jobs and sustainable economic growth while continuing to diversify our resource and energy sectors. I’m particularly excited that this program will incentivize hydrogen and fertilizer production. These are key growth and diversification opportunities for our province in a lower-carbon future,” said Adam Legge, president, Business Council of Alberta in a news release.
Projects eligible for the program must have a minimum of $50 million in capital investment, consume natural gas, natural gas liquids, or petrochemical intermediaries, create new and permanent jobs in Alberta, and meet the federally set definition of a manufacturing and processing facility.
Although there is no cap to the program, the government will report on expected costs each fiscal year, based on applications received and projects approved.
Full details on the eligibility and requirements for projects are available on alberta.ca, where companies can also register to begin the application process.
Being among Canada’s largest hubs for petrochemicals manufacturing, and global demand for petrochemical-derived products, Alberta is expected to continue increasing. The continued need is shown by The COVID-19 pandemic for petrochemicals to support the development of personal protective equipment, plastic food packaging, and cleansing agents.
According to the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada, Alberta’s chemicals sector, comprised predominantly of petrochemicals, was valued at $12.1 billion and employed about 58,400 people directly and indirectly in 2019.