Alberta To Cut Energy Industry Regulations

Trim "months of waiting" from planning

CALGARY — Alberta's new energy regulator could save megaproject developers "more than months" of waiting, Energy Minister Ken Hughes said Wednesday.

But environmental issues will be just as stringently addressed as ever, he said during a news conference at SAIT Polytechnic in Calgary after legislation establishing the Alberta Energy Regulator was introduced in the legislature.

The new legislation is the culmination of a three-year process to improve the province's regulatory regime and will combine the 75-year-old Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board with the regulatory functions of Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development.