Good morning members of the committee, Mr. Chairman.
My name is Brenda Kenny. I am president and CEO of Canadian Energy Pipeline Association. We look forward to the opportunity to provide our views on the 2014 budget.
As you probably know, we represent all the large transmission pipeline companies in Canada. Together they ship about 97% of all of Canada's daily onshore crude oil and natural gas production, and meet the needs of consumers in that fashion every day.
Our membership currently operates more than 115,000 km of pipelines in North America. We are big job creators on the cusp of investing more than $25 billion on nationally significant projects and we recommend that the federal government support pipeline technology research and collaboration across Canada. This would support continuous improvement on pipeline safety and security while also improving social licence to operate, reaching needed new markets, but also very importantly positioning Canada as a world leader in engineering research, development, and deployment.
Federal support for collaboration would be defined as a modest contribution comprised of two things: first, sufficient capacity within a key department such as Natural Resources Canada, through which the federal government could participate in collaborative efforts; second, funding of up to $5 million for three to five years to establish investments in technology and collaboration, perhaps through a CANMET energy program.
The economic benefits of increased pipeline infrastructure are clear. Salaries and benefits support thousands of families, local businesses, and many regional economies from coast to coast to coast. Last Friday we released an economic evaluation that showed direct employment across the country of over 9,000 people. Our members for, operating systems alone, pay over $1 billion a year in taxes. We also benefit thousands of local suppliers, welding, steel manufacturing, construction, information technology, even hotels, restaurants, and banking. They are all impacted by the pipeline industry, and we have a golden opportunity to broaden that long-term trade.
Infrastructure delays are estimated to cost this country $30 million to $70 million a year. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce calculates that $18 billion a year is lost and the overall market differential would cost Canada $135 trillion in the coming years. Of course, safety is job one, and we in our industry have committed to strive to zero incidents through design, constructing, operating, etc.
One of the most significant ways in which we improve safety is through deployment of advanced technologies. Collaboration is key. To really break the back and get a step change, we need to find better ways to collaborate. We have established the CEPA Foundation, which is the means through which suppliers and contractors across industry come together.
We've also been working with others on something called the Canadian Pipeline Technology Collaborative,which is a pan-Canadian approach to leverage and optimize R and D. This is similar to what Australia has done. It focuses on a number of core areas that are outlined in our letter to the committee. Actions on these objectives are critical through a tri-sector approach that includes governments, the research community, and industry, resulting in safety and new jobs through new high-tech firms.
Fundamentally, there is a number of key examples also outlined in the document provided to the committee. This complements our sophisticated risk management approach through the CEPA integrity first risk management program. The federal government's involvement is critical. We need to have capacity from the federal government to be engaged in collaboration and support for matched commitments to come. This supportive collaboration is an important part of Canada's golden opportunity in opening and securing new markets while meeting Canadians' public interest priorities respecting safety and environmental protection.
Thank you.