David Black proposes $13-billion refinery despite rating agency concern about his newspaper chain
Victoria-based newspaper publisher David Black has announced that he wants to build a $13-billion oil refinery near Kitimat.
The former chair of the B.C. Progress Board has told reporters that he will file an application to have the project undergo an environmental assessment.
It would process bitumen transported from the Alberta tar sands through Enbridge's proposed Northern Gateway Project.
According to the National Energy Board, there hasn't been an oil refinery built in Canada since 1984.
The news comes a couple of months after Standard & Poor's dropped its outlook on his newspaper chain, Black Press, from "B/stable" to "B/negative".
Black Press owns community papers across the province as well as newspapers in Washington state, Hawaii, Ohio, and Alberta.
Standard & Poor's stated that Black Press "has less-than-adequate liquidity based on refinancing risk and the company's tight leverage covenant cushion".
The rating agency's concern arose as a result of an unfavourable foreign-exchange rate, a lost printing contract, and declining advertising sales.
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Comments
4 Comments
Hans Goldberg
Aug 17, 2012 at 1:04pm
Before any agency does any work on this application, it should demand a viable business plan. I don't think, it is 100% certain, that the pipeline will be built.
Argulion
Aug 17, 2012 at 3:06pm
The refinery idea has a bit more merit from the perspective of creating more long term Canadian jobs but it still has it's short comings.
1. Building it closer to the oil sands would substantially reduce the transport requirements and risks from the bitumen while still creating the same long term Canadian jobs.
2. Why do we need to export Canadian resources at this time anyway? IMO, When Canada stops importing refined oil products is when Canada should be looking at exporting same. If there is a new pipeline needed at all it should be one that supplies Eastern Canada.
hAYOKA h
Aug 17, 2012 at 3:22pm
only an option for the ignorant and greedy
Gloria
Aug 17, 2012 at 5:42pm
I thought China refused to have the oil refined in Canada? They can do it much cheaper in China. Chinese workers are not paid very well over there. They have brought their own citizens, to work at the oil sands. Harper also made mention, China is bringing thousands over, to build the Enbridge pipeline.
The people of BC will still fight the Enbridge pipeline coming into BC, right to the last ditch. The Bitumen has caustic, lethal chemicals in it. So caustic it eats through the pipes. Nor does BC want the dirty oil tankers, coming into our sea.
The media is none too popular in BC either. Many have cancelled their newspapers. Many don't even watch the news on TV anymore. Sadly, the media chose to be, propaganda machines for the government, and certain politicians. It is of no surprise, the media has to cut back on staff. They did it to themselves.