What is the outlook for the competitiveness of Canada’s energy sector in global markets? Canada’s economy depends significantly on the energy sector – electricity, oil, gas, and pipelines – and its ability to compete internationally both for investment capital as well as for export markets. Canada’s strong historic track record of investment in energy and resources, due to natural endowments, physical infrastructure networks, and deep technological expertise, is facing new headwinds: regulatory uncertainties, federal and provincial political shifts, international climate policies, technological innovations in oil and gas extraction and in transportation, and low commodity prices, among others, are creating new complexities for the sector.
Leaders from the energy industry will discuss the impact of these forces on the sector – investment trends, risks and returns, and future growth – and debate what can be done by firms and governments to ensure it remains competitive. Will Canada continue to attract sufficient investment into the energy sector at a time of transition?
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REGISTRATION CLOSED
Event Details
December 12, 2017
4-4:30 p.m. - Registration
4:30-5:30 p.m. - Expert panel
5:30-6 p.m. - Q&A
6-7 p.m. - Reception (Cocktails and appetizers)
This event is sold out and registration is closed.
Topics You Will Explore
- What factors shape the attractiveness of Canada’s energy sector as an investment destination for globally mobile capital, and how are these factors changing?
- How are external factors – including new regulations, domestic politics, international climate policies, technological innovations, and the global economy – affecting risks and returns for investors in oil and gas, pipelines, and electricity?
- What policies and practices will help the energy sector remain globally competitive and support long-term investment?
About the Panellists
Steve Baker
Steve Baker is President of Union Gas Limited. Baker brings a wealth of financial, business development, marketing, and customer service experience to the role, which he assumed in January 2012. Baker joined Union Gas in 1989 and has held a number of senior management positions in regulatory, finance, and marketing over the course of his career. Prior to his current role, he served as Vice President and Treasurer of Spectra Energy Corp. He also previously served as Vice President of Business Development for Union Gas, managing storage and transmission as well as gas supply acquisition and planning, product and service development, customer support, system planning, and capacity management. Prior to joining Union Gas, Baker was an accountant with Clarkson Gordon (Ernst & Young), where he worked in audit and tax and served a variety of corporate clients.
Baker is a chartered professional accountant and a certified management accountant. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts in honours chartered accountancy studies from the University of Waterloo in 1986 and his Master of Accounting from the University of Waterloo in 1987. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario, the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, and The Society of Management Accountants of Ontario.
Aaron Engen
Aaron Engen is a Managing Director and Co‐Head of the Power & Energy Infrastructure group at BMO Capital Markets where his work focuses on advising and financing energy infrastructure companies. The key clients he works with are engaged in developing, constructing, and operating major energy infrastructure assets including oil and gas pipelines, midstream assets, power generation and transmission facilities, and regulated local distribution utility assets.
Joining BMO Capital Markets in 1999, Engen has extensive experience advising clients on merger and acquisition transactions and opportunities. He has worked with clients in conjunction with many debt, preferred share, hybrid, and equity financings. He has also prepared evidence and appeared as an expert witness on behalf of regulated utilities before several Canadian regulators in connection with cost of capital, capital structure, and other regulatory matters.
Prior to joining BMO Capital Markets, Engen was a partner at a major Canadian law firm, McCarthy Tétrault, where he practiced corporate and securities law, principally in the power and utilities sector. He has an MBA and an LLB from the University of Alberta and a BA from the University of Lethbridge.
John McManus
John McManus is Senior Advisor, OMERS Infrastructure/OMERS Private Markets. In his role as Senior Advisor, McManus supports OMERS Infrastructure in the areas of asset management, assessment of investment opportunities, relationship development, and mentorship. OMERS Infrastructure is the infrastructure investment advisory and management arm of OMERS, the pension plan for Ontario’s municipal employees.
McManus previously served as head of OMERS Infrastructure’s London, U.K. office. He has significant investment and asset management experience in sectors ranging from regulated utilities to nuclear power to telecommunications satellites. McManus has also served on the boards of High Speed 1, Associated British Ports, Scotia Gas Networks, Caruna Networks, and the Detroit River Tunnel Partnership.
McManus is a Chartered Accountant/CPA and earned his BComm degree from University of Toronto.
About the Moderator
Martha Hall Findlay
Martha Hall Findlay joined the Canada West Foundation as President and CEO on September 1, 2016.
Hall Findlay is a thought leader whose insight on issues such as pipelines, international trade, foreign investment and foreign affairs, energy and the environment, and supply management have framed the debate for decision-makers and everyday Canadians. Her career has been diverse, spanning law, technology, politics, and public policy.
Previously, Hall Findlay was the Chief Legal Officer of EnStream, a Rogers/Bell/TELUS mobile payments joint venture. As a lawyer, senior business executive, and successful entrepreneur, she has more than 25 years of domestic and international experience with major multinationals as well as startups, primarily in telecommunications and technology.
As an Executive Fellow at the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy, Hall Findlay focused on Canadian economic, social, and environmental prosperity in a global context.
She was a member of Parliament from 2008 to 2011, and served as a member of the House of Commons Standing Committees for Finance; Transport; Government Operations; and International Trade.
Hall Findlay has served as a board director and executive for several policy, environmental, community, and cultural organizations, including the Couchiching Institute on Public Affairs; the Canadian Centre for Responsibility to Protect (CCR2P) at University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs; the Georgian Bay Association; and Alberta’s CKUA not-for-profit radio network. She is currently Chair of the Board of Alpine Canada and a member of the Advisory Council for the University of Ottawa’s Positive Energy project.
About the Host
Guy Holburn
Guy Holburn holds the Suncor Chair in Energy Policy and is Professor of Business, Economics, and Public Policy at the Ivey Business School, Western University. He is also the founder and Director of the Ivey Energy Policy and Management Centre. Holburn joined Ivey in 2001 and teaches both degree and executive education programs. He holds a PhD and MA from the University of California, Berkeley, and a BA Hons. (First Class) from Cambridge University. Previously, Holburn worked for several years as a management consultant with Bain and Company in England and in South Africa. Holburn’s area of expertise is in the intersection of business strategy and public policy, with a focus on strategy and policy issues in the energy and utilities sectors. He has published widely in top academic journals and is a regular contributor to national and local media on energy issues. Holburn has worked as a consultant in the private and public sectors on economic impact assessments, corporate performance improvement strategy, merger/acquisition strategy, and regional economic development strategy. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the Alliance for Research on Corporate Sustainability, the Advisory Committee for the Canadian Network for Energy Policy Research and Analysis, and he is a member of the Council for Clean and Reliable Energy. Holburn is also a director of London Hydro.
Event Co-ordinator
Melissa Welsh, 519-661-3685