In the area of electrolysis, we have a competitive edge in terms of green energy because we own our hydroelectric power plants. There are two ways of doing the calculation. There is an indirect calculation, where we look at energy sources for industrial processes. When you talk about Hydro-Quebec in particular, or BC Hydro, both have a competitive and geographic edge because of the hydroelectric basin. That is quite natural. So both provinces have an edge. Alberta does not have that edge.
In Alberta, direct emissions are generated in both the primary and secondary aluminum manufacturing processes. We would say there is not a single government in Europe, Asia, Australia or anywhere else which would tell us we were so energy efficient they would give us all the credits we wanted, retroactive to 1990. Those are Kyoto Protocol countries that have a margin, an envelope of credits to allocate. If you allocate all credits to companies that responded quickly and delivered significant GHG emission reductions, you will have fewer left to encourage the others.
We therefore believe that a more pragmatic and a more realistic approach is needed in considering what means should be applied. For example, the steel sector—which has invested hundreds of millions in reducing its GHG emissions—could be told that targets will be established by industry, but with a baseline of 1996 or 2000, rather than 1990. This would effectively compensate the sector for what it has already achieved, and put the emphasis on the future by asking what the sector plans to do in the coming years.