Today Pipeline Online is publishing in-depth stories from the NDP and Sask Party on last week’s steel tariffs from President Donald Trump. Both parties produced remarkably similar calls to action. Steel is critical for oil infrastructure and production, especially with regards to pipelines. Most of the major pipelines built in Western Canada saw their pipe come out of Regina, but it’s been some time since that mill has produced any pipeline pipe. And now, steel production itself is under threat of tariffs.
NDP on steel tariffs: Pipelines, rail and power transmission
Sask Party on steel tariffs: ports, pipes and rail
The photos you’ll see in the stories are from an exclusive tour I took of the mill in 2009. It was nearly impossible for me to get that access back then, so I haven’t asked for it since. And really, not much will have changed, other than the fact the pipe-making side of the mill has been dormant for a long time now. I’m hearing that workers on the pipe side are or have scattered to the winds. While I’m not certain of that, if true means institutional knowledge to make that pipe is being lost by the day. It’s a live question if we could bring it back into full production of a quality pipe product in a reasonable time?
Consider this – both the Alberta and Saskatchewan governments have made it policy to seek to double their respective oil production. To do so means we would need to effectively double the entire network of Enbridge, Keystone, Express, and Trans Mountain Pipelines. And that’s only for oil – never mind gas. There’s nowhere else in western Canada that can produce that pipe of that scale. We would need to run EVRAZ 24/7/365 at max capacity to accomplish that, and it would likely take decades. We can’t afford to lose it. Because if we do, we’d probably need to bring in pipe from China or possibly Mexico. Seriously.
Heads up: the guest for the Pipeline Online Podcast on Tuesday at 1 p.m. CST will be former Alberta Energy Minister Sonya Savage. You can watch on X, LinkedIn or Facebook.
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Here’s the promo.
My question is: does Evraz have any other sales not to the US these days? With the no more pipelines in norther shitholistan my guess is no. Campaigning against US tariffs will get us no where as president Trump will bolster the domestic industry regardless of what anybody else says. They have 14x the economy we do. The lower dollar will help them be competitive but the focus needs to be on building more infrastructure up here using Evraz pipe to do so. That is not likely to happen in the demented dominion though so useless agitation it is.
BZ:
… “Trump has targeted steel and aluminum for additional tariffs… Regina’s steel mill has been dormant for some time… what is a steel mill to do when no one is building pipelines and steel exports are being pummeled by American tariffs?”
Answer: your anger is misplaced;
Canadian steel/aluminum mills
(and all North American manufacturing)
began closing decades ago
due to China & Liberal Party of Canada policies,
directly related today, to Trump’s tariff threats over
the Beijing/Ottawa economic/fentanyl attack
on US and Canada.
As for the Sask NDP, they’re fully complicit, and pathetic:
… “I’m proud to stand here today… and demand a better plan, create jobs by banning US contracts, build pipelines, twin the TransCanada Highway, high-speed rural broadband, more rail lines, more transmission lines, ensure that no one, especially Donald Trump, can ever hold the Canadian economy hostage again”
Scott Moe sees the real enemy:
… “we need market access, not inter provincial trade barriers so Canadians can’t buy Canadian oil, our federal government has no long term plans, no infrastructure investment for port capacity, military, ice breakers, ag products, energy products…”
The US is buying thousands of miles of pipe. With just the smallest amount of intelligence a deal could have been struck. But hey, Orange Man Bad.
An honest question about the steel industry in Canada … ?
Which is greater? the carbon taxes, and all other environmental penalties paid by the industry … or Trump’s tariffs?