Thank you, Mr. Chair.
We appreciate the opportunity to speak with you today about the work our industry is doing to help Canada meet its climate goals while ensuring that Canadians continue to enjoy a strong economy, long-term access to affordable energy and, in this increasingly unstable geopolitical environment, energy security.
Cenovus is one of Canada's largest energy producers, providing well-paying jobs to about 8,500 staff. Cenovus has been clear: We share the world's concerns about climate change. Oil and gas production contributes more than a quarter of Canada's total GHG emissions, and our industry needs to be a big part of the solution. That's why we're a proud member of the Pathways Alliance.
With expected coinvestment from governments, we and our Pathways partner companies have proposed to invest over $24 billion in emission reduction projects by the end of this decade. That's primarily for a shared carbon capture and storage network, as well as individual company projects that would feed into it.
We see an important role for our industry in helping secure a sustainable future for Canadians as the world transitions to a lower-carbon economy. That means reducing emissions. It also means keeping our industry strong and globally competitive for decades so that we can continue to make outsized contributions to Canada's prosperity. As you know, ours is a highly cyclical industry. Our fortunes rise and fall with the prices of natural gas and oil.
In 2022, for example, oil and gas companies reported a net income of just over $63 billion. In that same year, though, our industry paid about $50 billion in royalties and taxes. Compare that with 2020, when oil prices turned negative. Our industry reported net losses of over $45 billion. There were no income taxes paid by our sector that year and less than $5 billion in royalties.
Finally, look at the results from trough to peak. Over those three years, in aggregate, our industry reported total net income of about $53 billion. We paid one and a half times that much in royalties and taxes, almost $80 billion. That money helps pay for jobs, hospitals, education, social programs and other things that contribute to Canada's high standard of living.
A strong oil and gas sector is good for Canadians. We create hundreds of thousands of direct and indirect jobs and reinvest billions of dollars into Canada's economy, making our industry one of the largest investors in the country. Without oil and gas exports, the Canadian dollar would be weaker, increasing the cost of everything Canadians buy. Our industry also makes significant contributions to indigenous communities and is one of the largest employers of indigenous Canadians. Our energy sector is a strategic advantage for Canada in an increasingly unstable world.
Today, as the world's energy mix diversifies, every credible study shows that we will continue to need all forms of energy, including oil, to help meet the world's growing energy demand. That oil will be produced somewhere, and it should be produced in Canada, where we have some of the world's strongest regulations and industry-leading ESG performance.
Reducing carbon emissions is critical. Over the last three years, we and our industry partners have progressed multiple feasibility studies, engineering designs and environment plans and have started filing regulatory applications. We've also been advancing work on other technologies. However, before we can put shovels in the ground, we need many government permits and approvals, and we need regulatory certainty and coinvestment commitments.
In short, a strong oil and gas industry gives Canada access to secure supplies of energy on an affordable basis, supports our dollar and helps drive our economy. Today Canada faces a productivity crisis, declining GDP per capita and low business investment. A strong oil and gas industry can help get our economy back on track while we advance our work to reduce emissions.
With that, I'm happy to take your questions.