Dear Members of the Standing Committee on Finance,
On behalf of our member companies, the Canadian Gas Association (CGA) welcomes the opportunity to provide our 2019 pre-budget submission: Driving Canadian Competitiveness with Natural Gas.
By way of background, CGA members have been meeting the energy needs of Canadians for over 100 years. Today, through 500,000 kilometers of transmission and distribution pipeline and natural gas storage facilities, affordable natural gas is delivered to over 7 million customer locations. This means more than 20 million Canadians benefit from affordable, clean burning, safe and reliable natural gas solutions. A map of the Canadian natural gas service area is provided in Appendix 1.
Natural gas meets 34% of Canada’s energy needs. Over the last decade natural gas use in Canada increased by 28% and Canada’s utilities added over 1 million new homes, businesses and industries to the gas system. Looking forward, the National Energy Board forecasts natural gas will become the largest energy source in Canada by 2040. Globally, the International Energy Agency forecasts natural gas use will increase 45%.
The Government of Canada has focused its 2019 budget priorities on strengthening Canada’s competitiveness. In order to deliver on a more competitive country, our homes, businesses and industries require expanded and innovative access to clean, reliable and affordable natural gas.
This pre-budget submission offers six recommendations to leverage natural gas, our country’s most competitive energy source. The recommendations address competitiveness in: Renewable Gas; Rural and Indigenous Communities; Housing and Business; Transportation; Infrastructure/Cyber Security; and, Industrial Competitiveness.
We would welcome the opportunity to appear before the Finance Committee to present our submission directly. We look forward to working with the Committee and federal departments to deliver these natural gas solutions to Canadians.
Sincerely,
Timothy M. Egan
President & CEO
Canadian Gas Association