Wednesday, June 13, 2012
By CBC News
Roughly 60,000 delegates from around the world have come to Calgary for the the Global Petroleum Show.
On Tuesday night, several hundred people attended a reception where Premier Alison Redford made a quick speech.
"I'll say to some of our international visitors that as part of a stable democratic nation that values free enterprise and economic protection we believe that Alberta has successfully used innovation and technology to build our province and to build our energy sector," she said.
As much of the crowd continued to chat and visit, Redford talked about how energy has been key to economic development in Alberta and the rest of Canada. She says the energy sector can be relied upon to build a strong and stable economy.
The premier says Alberta has always welcomed innovators and investment.
"We know that this show that allows people to connect to each other here in Alberta, across Canada and around the world is key to success not only in this city but this province and this country," she said.
Redford and Alberta's minister of energy plan to address the conference at a breakfast meeting Wednesday morning.
American governor in attendance
Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin is also one of the key guests at the Global Petroleum Show that kicked off in Calgary Tuesday.
She says more Americans seem to be warming up to the Keystone XL pipeline project, a pipeline that would carry oilsands crude to the Texas Gulf Coast for refining.
The first application was killed by the White House in January over concerns about an aquifer and environmentally-sensitive area in Nebraska.
TransCanada has since re-applied to have the line approved with a different route. Fallin says the pipeline is good for both Canada and the U.S.
"As people become more educated about the benefits of the Keystone XL pipeline, what it means to the United States, how Canada is ... a friendly neighbour and it's my opinion much more better for national and economic security that we do business with a friendly ally," she said.
Fallin says she believes there is an environmentally safe way to finish the pipeline.
TransCanada, the Calgary-based company behind the Keystone proposal, says it's working with the state of Nebraska to design a new route around an ecologically-sensitive area and expects to have finished that process by September or October of 2012.