A Deep Look into Infrastructure, Resources, and Long-Term Investing in Energy Sector

Energy companies in Canada, like The Canadian Association of Energy Contractors (CAOEC), are analyzing all aspects of the energy sector to determine how they can improve processes, retain talent, gain energy stocks, and meet net-zero climate goals by 2050.

Mark Scholz, President, and CEO of CAOEC, sat down with Rachel Gregory, Digital Host at The Global Energy Show, to take a deep look into the energy investments, infrastructure, and resources his company has been taking advantage of to stay on top of the global energy demand.

CAOEC: A deeper look into energy investment, infrastructure and resources

CAOEC: Members & Mandates

Rachel: Can you tell us about who your members are and your extended mandates?

Mark: We're really excited about this new journey that we're on. Back in 2020, we developed a campaign called Leadership for Energy. What we were doing was trying to have a conversation among the energy service constituency to really understand what the industry needs were and what the industry wanted to look like. One group actually came forward to say, "Hey, we're interested in creating a new division within CAOEC.", and that was the directional drilling division. I would say, in general, our organization wants to represent any service company that is operating close to a wellhead. That's where we set the scope and the membership parameters.

Investing in the Energy Sector

Rachel: In your opinion, how can Canada secure long-term investment in the energy sector?

Mark: I'd boil it down into four key areas. The first is the development of infrastructure. We need to build pipelines that not only carry commodities like crude oil and natural gas, but we also need to look at pipelines that are going to be carrying carbon dioxide. That will allow us to fulfill the demands for carbon capture utilization and storage.

The second is we need to have a competitive and predictable public policy, which means we need to work with governments to ensure that we can build the necessary infrastructure under the right frameworks to attract capital.

The third is that we would send positive signals to the investment community from senior levels of government, both federal and provincial levels, indicating support and growth for the industry while being leaders in renewable energy development and export worldwide.

Finally, I would say attraction and retention of talent. It is important that we get the right people, the engineers, the crews that we need, the subject matter experts in all the various fields of geology, etc., that allow us to drive innovation in this sector.

How Existing Energy Infrastructure Helps Develop Innovative Fuels

Rachel: How could Canada repurpose its existing energy infrastructure to develop alternative fuels? And how can energy company expertise in hydrocarbon and tech sectors be utilized in cleantech? 

Mark: So that's really interesting. And that's part of the exciting new journey our association is on as we change the name of our organization to the Canadian Association of Energy Contractors. One important point is that 95% of our members who drill today are in the oil and gas business. They're really impartial for what they drill for or what they service.

We have members that are drilling for lithium extraction, potash, carbon capture, storage wells, helium, and fossil fuels; which are the feedstock to our blue hydrogen and geothermal industries. All these new budding industries are being drilled and produced using the same technology with the same people and, in many cases, the same processes. So when we talk about our energy evolution that's taking place, we're already there.

How Companies Can Prepare for a Changing Market

Rachel: What should companies focus on right now throughout the next decade to help prepare for the changing market?

Mark: The first one is to work through associations and ensure we have strong associations to collaborate directly with the government. We must ensure that we get the public policy right that guides this energy transition and that it's pragmatic and realistic. The second is thinking about strategic decarbonization or carbon abatement capital deployment strategies. Then finally, working in collaboration with producers to be problem solvers. How do we work together to reduce carbon emissions? I think it will be an amazing partnership if we can get it right, having producers and service providers working hand in hand.

How Will Canada Reach Net-Zero by 2050?

Rachel: Canada has committed to reaching net-zero by 2050. Mark, do you believe this is doable? And if so, are we on track?

Mark: Anything's possible, particularly for oil and gas companies that have always been on the front lines of innovation and technology. There are really four pieces that are going to allow us to be successful in achieving net-zero by 2050. The first is a collaboration with government and industry, which will be key.

The second will involve a lot of direct funding from all levels of government to make projects economically viable, particularly CCUS. And we've seen some good announcements from the federal government regarding carbon capture and sequestration utilization tax credits.

The third is talent outreach and retention. We have to ensure we're communicating to young people about the opportunities in our sector and that this is a great place to drive innovation. We need those bright minds in our sector to help us deploy and invent the innovation needed to decarbonize and meet the energy demand.

Finally, we need to have access to investment capital from those ESG conscientious investors. I would say Canada ranks number one when it comes to any ranking on ESG. Investors concerned about climate change and emissions need to look seriously at the Canadian oil and gas industry as an opportunity to put investments to work that will help us decarbonize this planet and also be leaders in all energy segments that come out of Canada.

Learn More About Infrastructure, Renewable Resources, and Long-Term Investing in the Energy Sector

Every energy company focused on developing new infrastructure, creating competitive and predictable public policies, and indicating support and growth for the industry have an advantage of gaining financial investments and staying on top of the global economy.

If you’re interested in learning more about investing in infrastructure and resources in the energy sector from the people actively changing the game in North America’s energy industry, register for the next Global Energy Show today.