There will be many more takes about how last week’s federal climate plan is bad for Alberta. They are wrong. I’m not a partisan but this is one instance where I feel I need to comment on how misguided the political spin is. This is good policy, including for Alberta. 1/

First, the short-term…far from a tax grab, most Albertans will end up with more $ as a result, thanks to the rebate. If you don’t understand how that can be so, I share this: https://twitter.com/trevortombe/status/1337491096536981504. Don’t ignore the facts for the sake of a convenient political talking point. 2/

Or, instead of the carbon tax going to the federal government, if the province were to take back the revenue, it could reduce the provincial deficit by a lot, even factoring in a low-income rebate. https://twitter.com/trevortombe/status/1337471470398652416 3/

But more importantly, the longer term. A carbon price like this helps create the incentive for the deployment of emissions-reducing technologies and infrastructure that Alberta needs to implement in order to make our economy – and our energy industry - more competitive. 4/

Having worked in energy innovation/clean tech, I can say that the one thing that the developers of such solutions say would make the biggest difference is a higher price on carbon. It changes the math for decisions about capital investment in industry & throughout the economy. 5/

Now that I work in finance, it’s also clear to me that the best shot we have to attract investment capital is to make our province a go-to place for climate-concerned investors like the ones lining up behind things like the Net Zero Asset Owners Alliance or Climate Action 100+ 6/

A price on carbon signals seriousness to these investors & will also help make Alberta a hot-bed for clean tech and emissions reduction solutions. We have high emissions, which means we are a great market for the deployment of solutions. A meaningful price on carbon helps. 7/

None of this factors in what should be the most important point, ie that these policies give Canada the chance to actually meet emissions reduction targets and in so doing playing a lead role in the global effort to address climate change – for the sake of our (grand)children. 8/

So don’t believe the storylines that these federal climate policies are going to be bad for Alberta. A government with foresight and a strategic orientation would seize the opportunity and help make this happen. End/