Daniel T. Cook
Trudeau’s blatant anti-Western Canadian bias continues.
Can we have a reasoned conversation about energy issues?
Depends who you’re talking with, but we absolutely must, and that’s what The Candice Malcolm Show did. She recently sat down with Questerre (QEC, TSX) CEO/Founder Michael Binnion to discuss Trudeau’s blatant anti-Western Canadian bias toward energy.
Binnion also heads the Modern Miracle Network, an advocacy organization for Canadian fossil fuels.
While his stock price (17.5 cents) doesn’t reflect it, down from an all-time high of $6, Binnion is a leading voice on how to use carbon technology to generate energy with “net-zero” emissions. He’s basically proven it can be done at Questerre’s giant Natural Gas reserve (the Utica Shale) in Quebec. Yet despite demonstrating how new technologies can be used to produce with zero emissions the province has only hardened its “ban and block” stance toward Oil and Gas by passing Bill 21, which gives Quebec the idiotic title of first jurisdiction in the world to explicitly ban Oil and Gas development!
Quebec’s been blessed with the Utica Shale – a reservoir estimated to be large enough to replace 20% of Russian energy supplied to Europe while also generating huge royalties and energy independence for the province – yet instead their “big idea” is to leave it in the ground!
What a bunch of dumbasses.
Doubling-down on their preposterousness, Quebec’s National Assembly has earmarked $100 million for the 5 corporations (led by Questerre) who rightfully own the Utica.
I think Questerre’s response will be to provide Quebec’s National Assembly with a $1 billion dollar lawsuit (we might hear more about that any day). $1 billion dollars is closer to fair market value. Questerre’s already spent more than $100 million proving out the reserve, so Binnion isn’t going to back down.
You can follow @MrBinnion on Twitter.
Below are some of what I thought were Binnion’s top thoughts made during the Candice Malcolm show. I suspect you’ll be hearing more from Binnion on the national stage because wasting the Utica Shale (1 of the 10 largest in North America) is a national news story. Plus, it’s thievery at the highest level.
a) Oil and Gas is racing toward low and zero emissions – it will get there before wind and solar;
b) The people of Quebec are 75% in favor of my project. Less than 15% are against it. Ban and block is virtue signaling from entrenched interests and political elites, against their own people;
c) The Utica Shale Project could equate to 10% of all North American LNG exports and replace 50% of Russian Gas supplies to Germany. Quebec could be energy independent. Because it’s so large there are disruptive elements to the project (perhaps speaking to those entrenched interests);
d) With the prices being placed on Carbon, storing it in the ground makes economic sense. Over and above that, technologies exist to turn Carbon into useable products, which would also be profitable;
e) As Candice Malcom says, and it seems to be true, environmental activists aren’t looking for solutions – they just want their way;
f) This is an opportunity for Canada to go up a weight class. In our entire existence we’ve been a junior partner to Britain, the United States, or the United Nations. A junior partner punching above our weight class, and we’ve been so proud of that. Lately we’ve been punching below our potential and floundering but this moment presents an opportunity to go up a full weight class and become senior partners, face-to-face, with America, Europe and Asia, saying we’re the place you can count on and we expect to be treated with that kind of respect.
QEC isn’t a popular play. The stock is underperforming its peer group due to Quebec’s ban/block on Utica. However, Questerre is a producer and should get more credit for the 1,500 to 2,000 boe/d production it does have in Alberta (financials came out today). It (Kakwa) in itself could justify Questerre’s $73 million market cap. Then there’s the 3 big optionality projects – Utica and what should be a $1 billion lawsuit, the Uintah basin (Utah), and Jordan (both of which represent billions of barrels in Oil equivalent).
About the writer: Daniel T. Cook, who joined BMR in June of 2016, hails from Texas and now resides in Florida after recently moving from Utah. Daniel has a strong passion for the junior resource sector and has followed the Venture and broader markets with great interest since he bought his first stock nearly 20 years ago at the age of 12. He became a licensed investment professional who was a Bright Future’s no Scholar at the University of Central Florida, graduating in 2010 with a major in Finance.
Note: Daniel holds a share position in QEC.
