Thank you, everyone.
My name is Grant Fagerheim. I am the president and CEO of Whitecap Resources. Our head office is in Calgary, Alberta. Our company produces approximately 110,000 BOE per day, comprised of light oil and natural gas, and employs approximately 700 employees and consultants in field operations in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.
We understand the expectations of Canadians, along with worldwide investors, that decarbonization and reducing greenhouse gas emissions are essential and we feel confident that our energy industry is moving rapidly to meet the challenge.
I sit before you as the operator of the largest carbon sequestration project in the world, located in southeast Saskatchewan. To date, we have sequestered and stored 36 million tonnes of CO2 and continue to inject approximately two million tonnes per year of CO2.
Although there are many aspirational emission targets being brought forward, we have already safely achieved a net negative emitter status, which, for clarity, means that we sequester and store more CO2 than our scope 1 and scope 2 emissions from our ongoing operations.
As we advance, the Canadian oil and natural gas sector will play a vital role in energy transition that includes global and Canadian climate change expectations. Energy transition will take time and will require a significant amount of continued innovation and technological advancement. It will not be specifically focused in any specific region in our country.
All different forms of energy are required to address the global fight against climate change, including current energy sources along with the new, emerging opportunities. A practical and measured approach is required that will provide widespread job opportunities and economic distribution across our country.
In addition to emerging technologies, including hydrogen, lithium, biofuels and renewables that we participate in to decarbonize our electricity, transportation sectors and building materials, oil and gas will continue to be essentials for decades to come.
With carbon dioxide being treated as a main contributor to climate change, we need to ensure broad and immediate implementation of carbon capture, utilization and storage technology beyond our existing projects. This can happen right now. It is well understood and recognized that light oil and natural gas reservoirs are proven to be an effective means of reliable and permanent CO2 storage, and this practice plays a significant role in combatting climate change.
CCUS from all existing sources can be very positive for Canada, making a positive impact on the environment, employment opportunities, business investment and economic growth.
We will need to further consider not only air decarbonization, but also land and water use. What's important to note is that full-cycle, cradle-to-grave environmental footprint analysis for all types of energy materials will require increased scrutiny and due diligence, something we haven't been doing to date.
We require thoughtful dialogues that include respecting and advancing the great gift of resources our country is blessed with. Post-pandemic job creation opportunities will be dependent upon our energy, environmental and economic policies.
Canada has the opportunity to continue to lead in responsible development of its resources while decarbonizing energy. Not only does a focused expansion on carbon capture utilization and storage technology help with greenhouse gas emission reductions and increased job opportunities; it also importantly links into the energy future of hydrogen development that requires even higher levels of carbon capture and sequestration.
There are many wide-reaching technical, financial, logistical and practical challenges that face our country. We must ensure that Canadian businesses in all urban and rural areas, regardless of size, can attract investment, remain competitive and have a prosperous future while meeting Canada's international greenhouse gas reduction commitments. Setting measurable near-term and long-term objectives is critical to attaining the success we want.
In closing, I recommend that the federal government's carbon capture, utilization and storage federal tax credits be expanded to include all CCUS projects in the tax credit structure, not only to add value to Canadian based energy companies, but also to demonstrate to our fellow Canadians, using a proven existing technology, immediate greenhouse gas emission reductions.
Should this not be considered by our government, we risk further falling behind other countries, including our U.S. neighbour, in attracting investment and job opportunities and in advancing clean technologies.
Thank you.