Alberta premier aims to see total oil output double to eight million barrels per day by 2035. Our weekly Countdown to 2 Million special series continues.<\/p>\n
Published Feb 25, 2026 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 Last updated 1\u00a0hour ago \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 11 minute read<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n You can save this article by registering for free here<\/a>. Or sign-in<\/a> if you have an account.<\/p>\n It was known for years by Calgarians as Red Square, the\u00a0headquarters of the country\u2019s state-owned oil company \u2014 and it\u2019s now preparing for a new era.<\/p>\n The iconic two towers that comprise Petro-Canada Centre, as it was officially called, were completed in 1984, with the 53-storey west skyscraper overtaking the Calgary Tower to become the tallest structure in the city.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Advertisement 2<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.Get exclusive access to the Calgary Herald ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.<\/p>\n SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.Get exclusive access to the Calgary Herald ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.<\/p>\n REGISTER \/ SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.<\/p>\n THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an Account<\/p>\n or<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n The $200-million complex sprung up during a classic office building boom in Calgary, powered by the oil and gas sector.<\/p>\n Noon News Roundup<\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n The past decade hammered Calgary\u2019s downtown, coinciding with a plunge in global oil prices and layoffs in head offices. The pandemic followed, along with sweeping industry consolidation, leaving the downtown office vacancy rate mired around 30 per cent.<\/p>\n Yet,\u00a0when\u00a0the owners of\u00a0the\u00a0office\u00a0tower\u00a0complex \u2014 Brookfield Properties and ARCI Investments \u2014 unveiled plans in December 2024 to move ahead with a more than $90-million plan to revitalize Suncor Energy Centre, as its now known, the idea landed on fertile ground.<\/p>\n It\u2019s attracted new tenants, such as growing energy infrastructure company Keyera, and ATB Financial, along with Suncor, a sign of the sector\u2019s deep-seated connection to Calgary\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n \u201cWe made a commitment,\u00a0a\u00a0major financial commitment, repositioning the asset and believing that for the next 40 to 50 years, this will position us to be best in class,\u201d says ARCI president Hannes Kovac, overlooking the construction happening inside the west tower during a recent tour.<\/p>\n \u201cOur ability to attract tenants that sign 10- and 20-year leases in this building, is a commitment by the energy companies to Calgary as a city.\u201d<\/p>\n Workers are now busy renovating the buildings.<\/p>\n The construction plans will see the addition of a performing arts amphitheatre, a large food court, an indoor garden, an exterior dining terrace, along with a new fitness facility and a conference centre for tenants.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n From Kovac\u2019s\u00a0perspective, companies wouldn\u2019t sign a long-term office lease unless they were convinced about the future of Calgary\u2019s economy and its commercial centre.<\/p>\n As the city heads toward a population of two million people in the coming years \u2014 possibly by the end of this decade, according to one projection \u2014 analysts and business leaders are confident the oil and gas industry will remain a pillar of the city\u2019s $139-billion-a-year economy.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the backbone of the city,\u201d says\u00a0Mac Van\u00a0Wielingen, founder and partner of ARC Financial Corp. and former chair of the Business Council of Alberta.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are seeing growth in a wide variety of sectors, but\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0all still anchored by the oil and gas industry,\u201d adds ATB Financial chief economist Mark Parsons.<\/p>\n The strength of the foundation is underscored by businesses making major multimillion-dollar investment decisions as they prepare for the future.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a resurgence of focus on the importance of energy companies worldwide,\u201d Kovac says.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd being a major worldwide energy centre and hub, we will benefit as a city.\u201d<\/p>\n Ambition fuels energy sector expansion<\/p>\n For\u00a0Dean Setoguchi,\u00a0CEO of Keyera, the decision to move into Suncor Energy Centre reflects a desire to find more space as the company expands its business in Canada.<\/p>\n The clearest sign of that ambition came last summer, when it announced the largest acquisition in the company\u2019s history. Keyera agreed to buy nearly all of Plains\u2019 Canadian natural gas liquids business for almost $5.2 billion.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Not only will it bolster the company\u2019s revenues and put domestic assets into the hands of the Calgary-based company, but the move will also increase its employee count.<\/p>\n Keyera, which has about 700 people working at its existing Calgary offices, will have about 1,000 workers, including contractors, once the acquisition closes.<\/p>\n \u201cWe certainly expect to continue to grow,\u201d\u00a0Setoguchi\u00a0says.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we look at our future for the next 10 to 15 plus years, there are other things now at our stage of growth that we think are important to our company and our people as well.\u201d<\/p>\n He cites a desire for Keyera to have new offices in a central downtown location, one that\u2019s close to public transit, while providing the business with the ability to keep growing.<\/p>\n Setoguchi has no doubt the energy sector will remain a foundational piece of the city\u2019s employment and economic base.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n History would indicate that\u2019s a safe bet.<\/p>\n From engineering firms and drillers to construction operators and financial services tied to the industry, energy has served as a catalyst for attracting investment and jobs into the community. It dates back decades, particularly after the historic Leduc oil discovery in 1947.<\/p>\n By 1965, the city was home to the head offices of 886 oil and gas related businesses, and by 1971, more than 10,000 local workers were directly employed by the sector, historian David Breen wrote in a 1977 paper about Calgary and the petroleum industry.<\/p>\n \u201cIn a visual or spatial sense, the impact of oil industry is even more dramatic than the demographic change,\u201d he stated. \u201cSince World War II, the city\u2019s downtown core has been almost entirely rebuilt.\u201d<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Indeed, many of the office towers were built during various oil price cycles before the turn of the century, becoming the home base for firms tied to the oil and gas industry.<\/p>\n \u201cDowntown Calgary (really) started with the discovery of Leduc, because the downtown was where the lawyers were, it\u2019s where the banks were,\u201d says veteran\u00a0oilman\u00a0Jim Gray,\u00a0who co-founded\u00a0Canadian Hunter Exploration in 1973 and is a member of the Canadian Business Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s where the Esso and Mobil and Shell and all of the big guys came down, and then we little guys filled in around it.\u201d<\/p>\n Today, the city\u2019s economy is diversifying, but it remains deeply connected to the energy sector\u2019s fortunes.<\/p>\n Gray notes demand for energy is increasing around the world. At the same time, the new liquified natural gas (LNG) industry that\u2019s taking off in Canada, and the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline, are exporting Alberta energy to Asia.<\/p>\n \u201cOur oil resource is going to be an enormous value for us for a long time, and now we\u2019re bringing new technology to it that we didn\u2019t even dream about years ago,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been involved in the energy business for 60 years, 70 years, and I\u2019ve seen dramatic changes, and it\u2019s even speeding up the changes that we are seeing.\u201d<\/p>\n We apologize, but this video has failed to load.<\/p>\n Play VideoEmployment shrinks as production soars<\/p>\n Yet, it\u2019s also true the oil price crash that unfolded a decade ago instigated sweeping change in the sector.<\/p>\n During the height of the oilsands investment boom in 2012, direct employment in the city\u2019s oil and gas extraction industries and mining surged to 63,000 jobs, making up 8.4 per cent of the workforce in the Calgary area, according to data compiled by Calgary Economic Development.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n After benchmark crude prices were cut in half during the final six months of 2014, industry direct employment fell to 43,200 by 2017.<\/p>\n Last year, it stood at 46,000, making up a smaller percentage of a larger local workforce, as the Canadian oil and gas sector has become more efficient and focused on financial discipline.<\/p>\n The past decade also brought about a push to decarbonize and reduce emissions from the oil and gas industry, the largest emitting sector in the country, amid growing climate concerns.<\/p>\n Global oil and gas consumption continues to rise.<\/p>\n Total gas output in Alberta hit its highest point in more than 16 years last November, while oil production continues to set records \u2014 averaging 4.1 million barrels per day last year, up almost four per cent from 2024 levels.<\/p>\n Alberta Premier Danielle Smith aims to see total oil output double to eight million barrels per day by 2035.<\/p>\n \u201cEnergy demand globally goes up every year. And people have come to realization that . . . all forms of energy are going to be required,\u201d says Setoguchi.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have tremendous resources in Western Canada. Obviously, a lot of that is centred in Alberta. So, I think our energy industry and the companies that are headquartered here are going to be around for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n Back to basics<\/p>\n City diversification efforts in other sectors are paying dividends, with rapid growth in aerospace, tech, life sciences, transportation and logistics.<\/p>\n But energy, including oil and gas, power generation, renewables and clean tech, are also expected to grow.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n After years of consolidation and cost-cutting in the upstream oil and gas industry, there are indications it could expand through this decade.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are at a really interesting moment, where after a decade of the energy industry being squeezed to death and proving itself to the rest of the country as probably the largest strategic resource the country has, we\u2019re at a pretty unique pivot point,\u201d said Kevin Krausert,\u00a0CEO of Avatar Innovations, which operates a clean energy accelerator and training program in the city.<\/p>\n \u201cThe industry will stop moving from a mindset where value creation can only be realized through cost-cutting, and now into a moment where value creation can consist of value growth.\u201d<\/p>\n Geopolitical turmoil has underscored the strategic nature of energy development.<\/p>\n There\u2019s\u00a0now a\u00a0sharper focus on global energy security and affordability, along with the ongoing push towards decarbonization and the importance of technology within the sector.<\/p>\n \u201cEnergy policy has kind of come full circle now,\u201d says Van Wielingen. \u201cIt\u2019s come home to the basics \u2014 and the basics being affordability and reliability and security, including, of course, geopolitical security and environmental impact.\u201d<\/p>\n In the past year, the policy landscape has also shifted.<\/p>\n The United States placing tariffs on Canada has put this country in a position of needing to boost its exports to other customers, and Canada\u2019s largest export remains energy.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Meanwhile,\u00a0opinion polls\u00a0show\u00a0a majority of\u00a0Canadians support building a new oil export pipeline, an idea being proposed by the provincial government.<\/p>\n The recent energy MOU between Alberta and the federal government says Ottawa will declare a new bitumen pipeline to the West Coast a priority project. However, it is \u201cmutually dependent\u201d on the proposed $16.5-billion Pathway\u2019s carbon capture network in the oilsands moving ahead.<\/p>\n These projects would require more oil and gas exploration and production, more design and construction work, and more jobs \u2014 if they advance.<\/p>\n Building a carbon capture network in the oilsands, tied to a new West Coast bitumen pipeline, as well as boosting Alberta production to fill it, would likely trigger an estimated $110 billion to $120 billion of total capital investment, says Kendall Dilling, president of the Oil Sands Alliance, previously known as Pathways Alliance.<\/p>\n \u201cThat whole bundle, with all requisite modesty, is (a) national interest project. There\u2019s nothing that touches it in Canada, in terms of the level of investment,\u201d Dilling says.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat does it mean to the city of Calgary . . . It is a massive, massive economic stimulus for the entire nation.\u201d<\/p>\n Van Wielingen expects the Canadian oil industry, which was hamstrung by pipeline constraints last decade, could see about half-a-million barrels per day of additional transportation capacity advance through optimization initiatives \u2014 even before a greenfield pipeline is built.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n And after several years of focusing on paying down debt, the balance sheets of most producers are far stronger than in the past, better able to withstand volatile commodity prices.<\/p>\n \u201cThe outlook is very positive for the energy sector in Alberta,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n \u201cThe big question, of course, is always around policy.\u201d<\/p>\n New \u2018energy cycle\u2019 awaits<\/p>\n While the oilpatch has become more efficient, it continues to grow in size and scale.<\/p>\n The industry\u2019s biggest\u00a0producers and midstream companies\u00a0have\u00a0the scope to\u00a0compete on\u00a0a global\u00a0basis.\u00a0For example, the combined market capitalization of pipeline giants Enbridge and TC Energy, and petroleum producers Canadian Natural Resources and Suncor Energy \u2014 all based in Calgary \u2014 exceeded $450 billion on Monday on the Toronto Stock Exchange.<\/p>\n The industry has faced a wave of consolidation since the pandemic, with\u00a0names such as Husky Energy, Seven Generations Energy, Veren and MEG Energy disappearing.<\/p>\n The Canadian oilpatch saw more than\u00a0$31 billion of M&A activity by exploration and production companies in 2025, hitting an eight-year high, according Sayer Energy Advisors.<\/p>\n Fewer companies mean fewer head office jobs, as well as less demand for office space. While the number of head offices in Calgary in 2024 was almost the same as it was a dozen years earlier, the number of people working in them dropped by six per cent to just under 30,000.<\/p>\n Yet, the potential sale of non-core assets spinning out of consolidation activities \u2014 along with Western Canada\u2019s strong inventory of premium drilling prospects \u2014 could spur new businesses to emerge.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m actually expecting a new energy cycle, in terms of growth, because we\u2019ve had so many mergers, that it will generate sales of assets, and because we have other eyeballs and investors starting to look at Canada as a place to invest for energy,\u201d says Calgary Chamber of Commerce CEO Deborah Yedlin.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will see more energy companies and that part of the economy will be bigger than it is today.\u201d<\/p>\n And it\u2019s not only growth from oil and gas production and related businesses that could unfold by the time Calgary reaches two million residents.<\/p>\n Energy production tied to new AI-focused data centres, petrochemical projects, carbon capture and storage developments, renewables \u2014 such as geothermal, wind and solar \u2014 and clean tech initiatives will help drive the city\u2019s economy forward.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I don\u2019t see changing is (that) the energy sector will continue to anchor Calgary\u2019s economy, but the energy sector itself might look a little bit different,\u201d says ATB\u2019s Parsons.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019d\u00a0be sending products to more diverse\u00a0markets.\u00a0You\u2019re\u00a0getting more growth in the downstream side of the business, and with the focus on decarbonization.\u00a0But I also think\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0going to look more diverse.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018We\u2019re in a pretty good spot\u2019<\/p>\n Back at the Suncor Energy Centre, the oilpatch\u2019s past is meeting the future.<\/p>\n The red granite and glass-clad buildings, completed when Alberta oil production was just slightly above one million barrels per day, are a beehive of construction work. (For a point of comparison, Suncor Energy alone produced more than 900,000 bpd last quarter.)<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n The clatter of activity echoes throughout the ground floor on the west tower, as renovations progress at one of the most identifiable buildings in downtown Calgary. Work on the complex is expected to be completed next year.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s one of the most iconic buildings that Calgary has,\u201d says Kovac, who also co-chairs the real estate sector advisory committee at Calgary Economic Development.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we get major energy companies\u00a0(to)\u00a0sign long-term lease commitments in our building, that is a long-term commitment by these companies to Calgary as an energy\u00a0centre\u00a0for the world, because our tenants are not only Canadian companies,\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0global companies.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd that commitment, long term, makes me feel we\u2019re in a pretty good spot.\u201d<\/p>\n Chris Varcoe is a Calgary Herald columnist.<\/p>\n cvarcoe@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n Bookmark this website and support our journalism: Subscribe now<\/a> so you don\u2019t miss the news you need to know and sign up for our free newsletters<\/a>.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Share this article in your social network<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Breadcrumb Trail Links BusinessEnergy Alberta premier aims to see total oil output double to eight million barrels per…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":498593,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194293],"tags":[49,2798,48],"class_list":{"0":"post-498592","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-calgary","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-calgary","10":"tag-canada"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=498592"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498592\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/498593"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=498592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=498592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=498592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Suncor-Energy-Longform\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Suncor-Energy-Longform.jpg\")
The Suncor Energy Centre building in downtown Calgary. Postmedia fileArticle content<\/p>\n![\"Calgary](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/20.6.2\/websites\/images\/identity\/logo-identity-ch-new.svg\"){kind=logo}
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Hannes Kovac, president and chief operating officer of ARCI Investments Inc., was photographed amid construction work to renovate the forum space of the Suncor Energy Centre in downtown Calgary on Thursday, February 19, 2026. Brent Calver\/Postmedia<\/p>\n![\"Keyera](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Dean-Setoguchi-Keyera.jpg\")
Keyera CEO Dean Setoguchi will be moving his company to the Suncor Energy Centre in downtown Calgary.\u00a0He\u2019s seen here on Tuesday, February 24, 2026. Darren Makowichuk\/Postmedia<\/p>\n![\"022426-2_Million_Jim_Gray_Brookfield\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/2-million-jim-gray-brookfield_301537850.jpg\")
Jim Gray, an independent director of Brookfield Asset Management, was photographed at the company\u2019s downtown Calgary offices on Wednesday, February 18, 2026. Brent Calver\/Postmedia<\/p>\n![\"Loading...\"](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/20.6.2\/websites\/images\/common\/icon-spinner-animated.svg\"){kind=icon}
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Avatar Innovations Co-Founder and CEO Kevin Krausert at his Calgary offices on Tuesday, February 17, 2026. Brent Calver\/Postmedia<\/p>\n![\"Head](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0225-head-offices.png\")
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Deborah Yedlin, president and CEO of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, speaks to media following an event on Wednesday, February 18, 2026. Brent Calver\/Postmedia<\/p>\n![\"Countdown](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1772025373_625_0000-countdown-logo.png\"){kind=logo}
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